Dragon's Duty
by dreamer9981
Summary: Completed 4.16! As the only female greenrider in Telgar Weyr, Carima deals with the harsh reality of life as a dragonrider, prejudice, romantic relationships, the imminent arrival of Threadfall, and one fiesty green dragon. Life is certainly never boring.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note/Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Anne McCaffrey, I'm making no profit off of this, etc. etc. All feedback, constructive criticism in particular, is welcome. With that said, enjoy.

Honor those the dragons heed,  
In thought and favor, word and deed.  
Worlds are lost and worlds are saved,  
From those dangers dragon-braved.

**Chapter One: Refusal**

_6.5.198_

_6th Interval_

"No."

"What?"

"Thank you, but no."

There was a mixture of disbelief and offended pride in the face of the rider in front of her. Carima sighed and turned away, ready to resume her interrupted path across the Weyrbowl when an iron grip encircled her upper arm.

"I don't think you quite understand what I'm trying to tell you. You've been searched, girl, by my Cirinth. He thinks you should stand for the next Hatching." The rider paused and peered into her eyes, seemingly trying to find some hint of recognition or excitement at his news. "Don't you _want_ to be a dragonrider?" There wasn't a boy or girl on Pern who wouldn't give up virtually anything to have the opportunity presented to this girl.

Carima smiled faintly and shook the rider's hand off of her. "My duty to Cirinth, and I thank you for your attention, but no, I have no desire to be a rider. If you'll excuse me, I have things to take care of in the kitchens." She strode quickly across the bowl, leaving the blue rider staring bewilderedly after her.

The cacophony of noise and bustle of the kitchens was a soothing balm. Here she could throw herself into the flow of activity and chores needed to successfully run the Weyr. Chop tubers here, wash dishes there, bring loaves of bread out to the dining caverns, return with more empty dishes to wash. There was no need to dwell on the surprising offer or think at all.

She managed to forget about it entirely until much later, when most of the dishes had been washed (one could never say _all _the dishes had been washed) and the rest of the weyrfolk had long since finished with the evening meal and retired to their individual weyrs, barracks, or wherever else they spent their nights. Carima sat in the corner of the dining caverns, a mug of klah in one hand and a plate with a plump redfruit pastry in front of her.

"There you are. We've been looking for you all day." Carima glanced up and found herself being stared at by a short, blond haired girl wearing candidate knots and a much taller, auburn haired man wearing brown wingrider knots.

"Hello C'rin, Elias," she said, putting down the mug. She had a bad feeling about why the two had cornered her together. Her brother had always regarded Elias as a bit of a nuisance and spent his entire childhood trying to get away from the two of them. The only time they ever banded together was to try and bully her. "What brings you two here at this hour?"

They spoke simultaneously.

"We just wanted to come see you and talk about—"

"Why in Faranth's name did you refuse a search today?"

C'rin glared at Elias, annoyed as ever by her inability to be tactful and tendency to jump headfirst into confrontation without planning out a strategy. "Well, yes, we also wanted to talk to you about that. Is it true?"

They dropped into the seats across from Carima and stared at her expectantly. She took a bite of her pastry and chewed carefully, then washed it down with a sip of klah, letting them stew in their own anticipation for a moment. Finally she lifted her chin and affirmed quietly, "It is true. Blue Cirinth seemed to think I would make a good rider, and I respectfully turned him down."

They each reacted differently. Tears welled up in Elias's bright blue eyes and she affected a look of utmost betrayal. C'rin, on the other hand, simply seemed disappointed.

"But why? It's finally happened! We've wanted to be candidates together forever. You can't have forgotten all the hours we spent as kids pretending to ride our dragons all over the Weyr? Sneaking in to the Hatching grounds to look at the eggs? Hanging out near the blues and greens when they were getting baths and hoping to be searched?" Elias shook her head indignantly. "You cried for three _days _when I was searched and you weren't. What's wrong with you?"

Carima smiled faintly as Elias listed their various childhood escapades. "Of course I haven't forgotten all that. But I also need to be practical. I'm _nineteen,_ Elias. I'll be twenty in a few months and then I won't even be eligible to stand anymore. You still have at least two Turns left, but it's too late for me. Why should I put aside everything I'm doing now to chase an old dream?"

Tears burst from Elias in a vengeance now. "It may be old, but it's still our dream! I can't believe you won't even try. What could it possibly hurt?" When Carima remained unmoved, she spat, "I hate you!" and fled from the dining caverns, most likely back to the Candidate barracks where she could revel in her own misery.

"She'll be over it in a few days," Carima told C'rin, who was looking rather shocked by her outburst.

"I guess I'd forgotten how loud she can be when she doesn't get her way," C'rin admitted. "D'you see now why I never wanted to hang out with you two? It wasn't ever you that I minded, just her."

Shrugging, Carima took another sip of klah. "She's not usually that bad. This is just a big disappointment for her. She never really gave up the idea of the two of us Impressing together."

"What, did she think you would be sharing the queen between the two of you?" the brownrider asked sarcastically.

"Of course not. In Elias's perfect world, she Impresses the queen and I keep standing until another gold egg shows up, and then I Impress and we live happily ever after as sister queen riders. Simple, right?"

C'rin just shook his head and then reached over and snagged her klah, took a sip, and set it down hastily, a twisted expression on his face. "Faranth! I forgot how much sweetener you always put in your klah. Better watch out or your teeth will rot away," he teased, referring to the old warning their foster mother had always used.

They sat in companionable silence for several minutes before C'rin finally sighed. "Are you sure about this? It's not too late to change your mind."

"I know," Carima said slowly, "but I've made up my mind. Don't think I haven't considered the idea before. For a while after Elias was searched I kept thinking that there was still time for me to be searched too. After all, sometimes a dragon will pass you a hundred times and it's the hundred-and-first time that he sees your potential. But after a while I started thinking about it more and more, and I realized I don't particularly _want _to be a rider. Elias always wanted it more than I did." She fiddled with the handle of the klah mug, considering how best to phrase her words. "C'rin, I _like_ working in the lower caverns. I'm good at it. I'm a good cook, I enjoy organizing big feasts, I have a great head for figures when it comes to adding up what supplies we're going to need each month, and I don't even mind dishes all that much."

"I still think you just like being in the lower caverns because it means you can sneak as many sweets as you want all day," C'rin insisted.

"Well, that doesn't hurt," she admitted. Then she reached over and took her brother's hand, marveling as always at how large it was. "I'm happy being a lower caverns worker. And I was waiting for a better time to tell you this, but I suppose now will do. Gareena talked to me the other day and she says she wants to train me to be her successor." She let the impact of her words sink in before a grin spread across her face. "Can you imagine? Me, the headwoman of the entire Weyr? It's a huge responsibility, but I know I would be good at it. She's already started keeping me close to her so I can learn all the things she does to keep the Weyr running. If I were to take time off to stand for this Hatching, I'd be missing valuable time with her. She might choose someone else."

"Maybe, but I doubt it. It's been fairly obvious to the rest of us that Gareena wanted you to be her successor. I'm sure she would understand if you took just a month off to try your chances as a candidate."

Carima shook her head stubbornly. "I know that, but there's something else. I don't know if I could handle the rejection of not being chosen. I've seen too many candidates crushed when all the eggs have hatched and there's no lifemate waiting for them. I don't want to go through that. Better to avoid the heartbreak altogether and stick with what I like doing."

For several long moments C'rin didn't respond, but finally he gave a slow nod. "I understand. I stood for enough Turns to know the heartbreak of not making Impression. It certainly isn't for everyone. Still…it was all worth it." A glazed look passed through his eyes, and Carima knew he was sharing the memory of that perfect moment with his brown.

"How is Shelth doing these days?" she asked C'rin.

Her brother smiled and all the tenseness of the situation diffused for good. She knew he wouldn't question her decision again. "Wonderful, as always. Working hard in drill and chasing every green that rises." A faint blush stained his cheeks. "I swear, no other dragon chases as much as he does.

"Like rider, like dragon, I suppose. Tell me, how have your attempts to seduce the lovely Sheela been going?" she asked, referring to the black-haired healer beauty that C'rin had been mooning over for the past few months.

"She's indifferent. I fear I'll never be able to win her heart. Shelth will just have to keep winning greens to take my mind off things."

Carima rolled her eyes. Her brother was really very attractive, he just always went after the most unavailable, stunningly beautiful women in the Weyr. If he paid any attention, he would realize that there were several other women who would be more than willing to comfort the tall, broad-shouldered rider.

"I'm sure he'll do his best." She finished her last sip of klah and stood. "I'd best get these dishes back to the kitchens and then head to bed. Unlike you lazy riders, we have to be up at the crack of dawn to make sure you get fed!"

"This lazy rider won't be sleeping in," C'rin said mournfully. "Early drill tomorrow. T'let has been getting more and more fanatical with every turn. He's convinced Thread will start falling a few turns early, which means we must be in full fighting form."

"It's good for you." The siblings reached the exit of the dining caverns and Carima gently touched his arm. "Thank you for understanding. I know you'd probably like to see me Impress just as much as Elias does."

C'rin grinned affectionately back. "Of course I would, but I'll love you no matter what." He reached over and hugged her, then disappeared into the shadows of the Weyr.

Carima waited until he had melted away completely, then headed back to the kitchens, where she belonged.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Anne McCaffrey…but then, we already knew that, right?

**Chapter Two: Hatching**

_8.2.198_

_6th Interval_

The humming began just after noon, a deep rumbling that permeated the entirety of Telgar Weyr. For a brief instant everyone in the bowl froze, and then burst into action. Candidates rushed to the barracks to change into the traditional white robes and troop to the Hatching sands to await their potential lifemates. The Weyrlingmaster and his assistants started slaughtering herdbeasts and chopping meat for the dragonets soon to hatch. Everyone else rushed for the Hatching sands, jockeying to find the best vantage point to view the upcoming event. It was an important moment for the entire Weyr, since the first queen egg in more than ten Turns would be Hatching. Not only that, but it was the largest clutch the Weyr had seen in the entire 6th Interval. Forty eggs plus the queen made forty-one total, a tangible sign of the end of the Interval and the upcoming Pass. The Hatching represented both the continuing hopes of the Weyr and the inevitability of the return of Thread in a few Turns' time.

The entire Weyr was waiting in great anticipation for the event and everyone wanted to have the best seat available. Everyone, that is, except Carima. As soon as she felt the deep humming in her bones she retreated to the kitchens, remarkably empty of the usual hustle and clutter. Only a few drudges remained under direction of Gareena, the elderly headwoman who was in charge of preparing the Hatching feast.

Carima gratefully threw all her energy into the feast effort. Normally she would be up in the stands cheering for Elias, but she didn't think she could bear to watch this Hatching. As long as she was safely in the kitchens, she could avoid tantalizing thoughts of "what if"—but if she came face to face with the reality of the Hatching, her self-imposed stoicism might crack along with the dragon shells.

"Carima? What are you doing here still?" Galeena walked over to Carima and pushed a strand of her nearly white hair out of her eyes. "Shouldn't you be up in the stands by now? The Hatching should be starting any minute!"

"I know," Carima said, still kneading the pastry batter in front of her, "but I thought I'd stay down here and help you with the feast. I've seen so many Hatchings, and it would be good for me to learn about the other side of things."

"You spend all your time dealing with the 'other side of things,' young lady," Galeena said, picking up a wooden spoon with her wrinkled hand. "Every Hatching is unique and I won't have you miss one. Besides, your friend Elias might never forgive you if you miss her Impression." Like many in the Weyr, Galeena was thoroughly convinced their own Weyrbred girl would beat out the Hold and Craft girls that had been brought in for the Hatching. Now Galeena waved the spoon threateningly and smacked Carima lightly on the arm. "I won't hear any excuses. Go now!"

Carima knew better than to fight with the headwoman. She might have been getting old, but she had lost none of her authority and determination.

Moving quickly, Carima made her way to the Hatching grounds, where the humming had swelled to a nearly unbearable pitch. She expected to see dozens of shells littering the ground and glistening dragonets searching for their lifemates, but instead every shell was still intact and the candidates were settled around the eggs of their choice, with the girls gathered near the largest of all, the shining golden orb that housed the queen.

It was strange. Normally when the dragons started humming the Hatching began soon after. All the seats lowest to the sands were taken and Carima found herself on the upper rim of the grounds. She would be too far away to see the looks of wonder and awe on the candidates faces when they Impressed, or hear them cry out their dragons' names, but at least she would be able to see everything as it happened.

Forty-one eggs. The last clutch Linneth had laid, two Turns ago, had only contained twenty-four eggs. At the time, that had seemed like an overly generous clutch indeed. The norm before then was anywhere between ten and fifteen eggs. The old queen, Reath, had laid a consistent ten eggs nearly every clutch, from which C'rin had Impressed Shelth nearly eight Turns ago now.

She vividly remembered the moment when the small brown emerged from his shell, creeling piteously, and made a direct line for the then-Carrin. The boy, just fifteen Turns, reached Shelth halfway between his broken shell and where he'd been previously standing and they met in a tumble of arms and wings. He emerged from the pileup grinning triumphantly and called out his new lifemate's name so that Carima, watching in wide-eyed wonder from the very front row, could hear just from his voice the way Impression had so completely changed him.

Yes, Hatchings were wonderful events indeed. Carima turned her attention back to the current one, frowning slightly. She couldn't figure out why the eggs weren't cracking yet. The draconic hums hadn't abated, and the eggs were rocking gently on the hot sands, but not a single dragon had emerged yet. All around in the stands people were murmuring quietly, just as confused by the delay as Carima.

Her eyes drifted to the golden queen, Linneth, who was curled up in one corner of the sands, keeping a careful eye on her plentiful clutch. She didn't seem at all concerned, humming with as much vigor as she ever did. Carima took a moment to admire the golden queen. She was lovely, despite being past her prime and not rising quite as often as she had in her youth. Her deep, burnished gold coloring, although not as flashy as some queens Carima had seen, made her all the more unique. She was also fairly gentle for a gold, never trying to intimidate the candidates or getting broody, unlike old Reath, who had been a terror until the last egg cracked.

Still nothing. At least an hour had passed from when the humming began, and though the eggs were rocking a slightly more enthusiastically, there was no sign that they would begin hatching soon. Carima certainly didn't envy the candidates, whose feet must be blistering from the hot sands. She spied Elias near the queen egg and watched her friend fondly. She certainly hoped the blond girl Impressed the queen. Although Elias wasn't the most responsible person and could be brattier than anyone Carima knew, she was also charming and good at making friends, important qualities in a Weyrwoman. Besides, she thought with amusement, if Elias became Weyrwoman and she was the headwoman, she would be more than capable of making sure the Weyr ran smoothly. They would make a good team.

Now, if only the eggs would hatch. Nearly two hours has passed and it seemed as if the Weyrlingmaster was about to remove the dehydrated, overheated candidates from the sands when a shout went up in the crowd and the humming reached fever-pitch intensity. One of the eggs gave a violent shudder and cracked in half, a deep blue dragonet rolling out. He shook himself, stood up, and stalked over to the nearest group of boys. He peered carefully at each one, seemingly in no hurry to find his lifemate. Just as the eggs had taken longer to hatch, these dragonets would take their time finding the perfect candidate. Eventually he stopped in front of a lanky boy with brown hair and cried joyously. The boy knelt and wrapped his arms around the sturdy blue before pronouncing him "Marth."

They headed off the sands and soon there were too many dragonets hatching to keep track of. Two greens, a brown, and another blue all appeared at once and found their lifemates. Then the first bronze appeared, large and feisty, tumbling from his shell and rushing around the sands, knocking boys here and there until he found his chosen. A surprisingly young, delicate looking boy, he appeared to be completely dumbfounded by Impression and had to be nudged off the sands by his impatient dragon.

The moment they had been waiting for happened when nearly half the eggs had hatched. The golden egg gave a sickening lurch and a crack appeared. The crowd watched, collective breaths held, as more and more cracks appeared. Finally the entire shell burst open to reveal the queen. She was the palest gold Carima had seen, her entire body bathed in the light sheen except for her wings, which had streaks of slightly brighter, more traditional gold. She seemed small for her color, hardly bigger than the first bronze that had hatched, but appeared healthy.

She took her time stepping out of the shell remnants and looking at the surrounding girls. There were ten, including Elias, and most looked both eager and utterly terrified at the same time. Only Elias seemed confident, standing straight and tall, ready for the queen to make her choice.

The little gold moved forward slowly and stopped in front of each girl, thoroughly appraising her potential partners. Carima giggled a little. It was almost as if the girls were Hold guards being inspected by an unsatisfied commander. She seemed to get more and more agitated as she rejected the girls, wings dragging in angry jerks as she hopped along.

She finally stopped in front of Elias and cocked her head. Elias took a hopeful step forward but was stopped in her tracks by an angry scream from the dragonet and a warning hiss from Linneth, who was carefully observing her daughter's progress.

The crowd exploded when it became apparent that the queen had rejected every girl on the sands. "She has to choose!" one irate bronzerider called from the stands, evidently extremely anxious for his dragon's potential future mate. Others looked fearful. Every once in a while a dragon died for lack of the proper lifemate, but for it to be a queen was unthinkable.

A deep feeling of terror built in the pit of Carima's stomach. This couldn't be happening. Elias was supposed to Impress the queen and everyone was supposed to be thrilled. That was exactly the way things were going to go. She mentally willed the little dragon to _choose,_ now, but her command was ignored. The rest of the dragons had made their choices, why couldn't she? There was only one other lonely green on the sands; the rest were gone.

She couldn't watch anymore. Carima turned to flee the scene but met a barrier of human flesh. Two hands clamped down on her shoulders and she found herself facing the same rider whose blue had searched her months ago. He seemed much taller and more intimidating now as he glared down at her angrily.

"I knew this would happen," he said, viciously dragging her away from her seat and down the aisles of the stands. "Cirinth has never been wrong about a potential candidate yet. His _always _Impress."

"But I don't want to!" Carima pleaded as they got lower and lower. She could hear the little queen's haunting cries much more clearly as they descended.

"It doesn't really matter what you want," the rider said, tightening his grip on her arm. "That queen will die if you don't help her now. And a part of you will die right along with her."

The rider burst through what had seemed like a solid wall of riders blocking the entrance to the sands and literally threw Carima in. She landed heavily on the sand and hissed as the heat scalded her skin. She blinked grains of sand out of her eyes and sat up slowly. Her vision slightly blurred from the stinging sand, Carima watched in disbelief as the gold finally moved towards one of the Hold bred girls.

Impression. "Her name is Caleyth!" the girl cried, tears falling down her face as she embraced the pale gold dragonet.

_She doesn't want me. She doesn't want me. She doesn't want me._ A mixture of relief and faint disappointment whirled around in her head. The queen had made her choice, and it hadn't been Carima. Which is what she had wanted all along. Right? Of course. But then…what on Pern was she still doing on the sands?

These confusing thoughts continued as the girl led the queen off the sands. Then she heard something else.

_She is not here yet. I refuse to hatch until she arrives._ Carima blinked. The very last dragonet on the sands, a brilliant emerald green with blue-green swirls on her wings, appeared to be trying to climb back into her egg. She was burrowing into the emerald shards, some of which were stuck in haphazard patterns on her now-dry hide. _I will come out when she arrives. _

_She is here now. _Carima realized that everyone in the stands could hear as Linneth spoke to her last remaining daughter. The great queen hovered over the green attempting to burrow back into her shell. _Look._

It was far too late for Carima to try and run. The mantle of responsibility was hers and hers alone to pick up and shoulder. It was only a matter of time before the green saw her and raced across the sands and come to a jerking halt in front of her.

_Why did it take you so long?_ she demanded angrily.

_I'm sorry. I'm here now,_ Carima explained and then her world was rocked as her eyes locked with the whirling red gaze of the green. It felt like the floor dropped out from beneath her and she was falling, falling into the consciousness of her lifemate. She dropped to her knees as she had seen so many candidates do over the Turns and the green raced into her arms, sending them tumbling down to the sands. This time she hardly even felt the heat, aware only of the incredible waves of love wrapped around her.

They couldn't stay there forever. The dragonet needed to eat. Eventually they untangled themselves and Carima led green Mayath off the sands.

**Author's Note: **Thanks to those who left encouraging reviews, I really appreciate it. I hope this story is going in an interesting direction, and as always I welcome constructive criticism and helpful feedback. In the next chapter, we'll see how everyone reacts to Carima's unexpected Impression (after all, at this point in time on Pern, girls NEVER Impressed anything other than gold, but I'm working under the assumption that Path couldn't have been the first green to break tradition…), and more importantly, we'll see how Carima herself reacts.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Thanks once again for the kind reviews. I'm glad everyone approved of Carima _not _Impressing the queen (things will be much more interesting this way, trust me). To answer a question, I'll try to keep chapters coming out every few days. At the moment I have lots of time to write, although as the summer moves on I might not have quite as much. I'm also a chapter ahead in my writing at the moment, so if I ever do run into a spot when I can't write, I'll still have something to post. I hope everyone enjoys the chapter, and as always I love and adore helpful feedback.

**Chapter Three: New Weyrlings**

_8.2.198_

_6th Interval_

Carima was greeted with mayhem as soon as she exited the sands. Everywhere voracious young dragons were tearing into the meat provided by their lifemates, with older riders watching over the process closely. The newly-Impressed queen, Caleyth, was in the corner with her delighted partner. And right in front of her, a fierce argument was raging.

The Weyrleader, J'rey, the Weyrwoman, Lirallen, and the Weyrlingmaster were engaged in a vicious three-way debate.

"This is unacceptable! The dragon is clearly sick, to have made the choice she did. Girls do not Impress anything other than gold!" The Weyrlingmaster was practically apoplectic with rage, standing mere inches away from J'rey's face.

"You know as well as I do that the dragon's choice is final and absolute," Lirallen snapped. "There is nothing wrong with that little dragon. She found her lifemate just like all the others."

"And so what if she did? What do you expect me to do with a _girl_? Shall we just house her with all the male Weyrlings in the barracks? How in Faranth's name do you expect a girl to keep up with all the boys in training? And what about when the green starts rising? I suppose her future Wingleader will be happy to let her sit out nine months of drill every time she gets herself with child."

Lirallen growled and looked like she was about to say something rude when J'rey raised his hand. "Come now, can't we reach some sort of agreement? The Weyrwoman is right in that the Impression is legitimate. No one can argue that. And you know as well as I do that there are several female-ridden greens in some of the other Weyrs. But I understand your concerns with training and her future in a wing. It is problematic at best."

The discussion continued on and Carima felt all the blood drain from her face. Now that the immediate aftermath of the Impression was over, she realized the seriousness of her situation. The Weyrlingmaster was right. Girls didn't Impress fighting dragons. Nothing like this had ever occurred at Telgar in her lifetime. Her Impression was a freak accident. Where could she possibly fit in now? For someone who had spent her entire life very certain of where she belonged and what she was supposed to be doing, Carima was now lost and adrift.

_Do you not want me?_ Mayath's voice was quiet and a little hurt as she nudged Carima's leg.

"No, no, love, of _course_ I want you. We just seem to be causing some problems for the Weyrleaders," Carima assured Mayath, trying to focus on her dragon instead of the hollow feeling in her stomach.

_I do not care what problems we cause. I have a problem that needs to be fixed. I am _hungry.

Carima realized that her dragon's eyes were whirling not from fear at the fight taking place in front of them but from stomach-cramping, nauseating hunger. It wasn't her own, but she felt Mayath's as if it was.

Resolutely turning her back on the Weyrleaders, Carima located a pail that was still filled with meat and set herself to the task of feeding her dragonet. The little green ate voraciously, devouring the meat nearly as quickly as Carima could pass it to her. Only when the very last piece of meat was gone did she give a delicate burp and seem to be sated.

Having kept an eye on the others who finished before her, Carima knew what to expect next. She grabbed a second pail, this one filled with oil, and used the wooden paddle to smooth the thick substance all over Mayath's bright hide. _Oh, yes, that's good. More!_ Carima laughed at the bossy tone and complied, liberally spreading oil until Mayath was gleaming in the late afternoon light.

"She's a beauty," a voice said, and Carima turned to find the Weyrwoman standing next to her. Clearly she had been nominated the one to talk to her, since the two men were standing some distance away, the Weyrlingmaster with his arms crossed and a scowl on his thin face.

"Thank you!" Carima hastened to reply, unsure of how to address such an important figure in the Weyr. "Her name is Mayath." She paused and then burst out, "I'm not sorry I Impressed! I'm very sorry about all the problems we might cause, and I certainly didn't mean to bring trouble to anyone, but I'm not sorry to have Mayath!"

That was the truth, she realized suddenly. As determined as she'd been before to refuse Impression, now that it had happened she could think of no other way to live her life. Mayath was more a part of her than her arms or legs, integral and necessary and feeling like she'd _always _been there. It was just a miracle that Mayath forgave her for making her wait to Impress in the first place.

She put one hand on her dragon's shoulder as these thoughts flitted through her mind and was aware that Mayath had stood up to her full height and her eyes were spinning balefully at the Weyrwoman.

"Of course not," Lirallen replied soothingly, "no one is sorry that you found each other. I'll admit that we've never had a situation like this, but that doesn't mean we can't adapt. Dragonriders have never been as hide-bound as Holders, you know."

Carima felt the beginning of hope. "Does that mean I'll be able to train with all the others? And fly in a wing eventually?"

"If I have anything to say about it," Lirallen replied dryly. "For now you and Mariko will be sharing a weyr close to the Weyrling barracks so you won't be entirely separated from the rest of your classmates. Weyrlingmaster T'rut has agreed to train you along with the others, as long as he thinks you're capable of keeping up." She leaned closer, conspiratorially. "He doesn't think you can do it, but I sincerely hope you prove him wrong."

"Thank you, Weyrwoman," Carima said, filled with gratitude for the older woman's kindness.

"Don't thank me; we should be thanking you for keeping this Hatching a happy occasion."

Carima didn't even want to contemplate what would have happened to Mayath if that bluerider hadn't thrown her onto the sands.

_I'm sleepy. Are we done yet?_

Lirallen seemed to know what Mayath had said before Carima could relay it. She grabbed a passing drudge and told Carima to follow her back to her new weyr, where she would find her belongings had already been moved in.

Eternally thankful for the Weyrwoman's help, Carima made her farewell and followed the drudge to her new home.

Carima hesitated at the entrance to the dining caverns. She knew the normally bare, gray walls would be covered in bright banners and the gigantic tables laden with wine and food. Harpers would be set up in the corner, playing all the traditional dance songs. The new Weyrlings would be making the rounds, receiving congratulations from family and friends, recounting the unbelievable experience of Impression, and bragging about the superiority of their dragons. It was a scene she had witnessed a hundred times before, but never as one of the newly-triumphant riders.

Triumphant was the wrong word. Giddy with the intensity of the emotional bond and completely and thoroughly in love with Mayath, yes, but certainly not triumphant. She couldn't for one second forget that she was different from all the others, an abnormality. What would people say? Rumors flew faster in a Weyr than dragons could blink _between_ and Carima knew her story would be recounted over and over with embellishments added each time. If the Weyrlingmaster was any indication of the general mood of the Weyr, most would not be sympathetic to the way she had challenged tradition, however inadvertently. "Influencing the poor beast in the egg," or maybe "interfering where she had no business getting involved," or…

"You look like you could use some company." One of the sweetest, smoothest voices Carima had ever heard addressed her, and she turned to see the girl who had Impressed the queen standing next to her. She had changed into a red dress and although she wasn't particularly attractive, her voice more than made up for her average looks. She had light brown hair cropped in a practical style just below her chin, a stubborn mouth, round face, and hazel eyes. "My name's Mariko."

So this was the girl she would be living with for the remainder of Weyrling training. Carima immediately had a positive feeling about the girl, who looked to be a few Turns younger than she was. "I'm Carima. Have you gone in yet?" she asked, motioning to the entrance. As the newest goldrider in the Weyr, she knew Mariko would be receiving the most attention.

"Yes, I've already said my hellos to most of the guests. Who would have thought that Impressing the queen would be boring news tonight? Everyone's talking about you."

Carima blanched. Maybe Mariko wouldn't be getting a lot of attention. She'd known the gossiping would happen, but hearing it from someone else made it real. "I can't do this. I'm going back to our weyr."

"Oh no you won't," Mariko insisted, pulling her towards the entrance. "No one will be rude if you're with me, and you should enjoy the feast with the rest of us."

Carima reluctantly let the much taller girl pull her into the dining caverns and flushed as a low buzz greeted her entrance. Mariko resolutely led her to the overflowing tables and insisted that she fill her plate. They were just about to sit when a voice shouted her name and she barely had time to set the plate down when C'rin wrapped his arms around her and twirled her in a big circle.

"You did it! You Impressed." He beamed down at Carima, face slightly flushed from wine and filled with doting adoration. "I knew you would do it. She's a real beauty," he said.

The three of them sat down and discussed every aspect of the Hatching. Carima felt herself slowly start to relax and she was able to ignore all the whispers and glances directed at her, or at least for the most part. It helped that through the bond with Mayath she could feel that the little green had slipped into an exhausted sleep. At least one of them was able to escape the pressure and relax.

While C'rin and Mariko animatedly discussed the finer points of dragon bathing, Carima let the music and good food lull her senses as she gazed around the dining caverns. It was only when she spotted a familiar figure in the corner that a prick of guilt forced her into action.

She excused herself from the other two and headed straight for the corner. She stopped in front of the bluerider and took a breath. "I just wanted to apologize for being so stubborn earlier. Without you, I never would have found Mayath." That didn't even begin to convey the depth of her gratitude, but she hoped he would understand what she was trying to say.

"That's funny, because I was hoping to apologize to _you._ I was rude and not particularly sympathetic, _and _I assumed you were meant for the gold, which now seems out of line. I probably wouldn't have even thought about you if the gold had Impressed right away, and then what would have happened to your little green?" He shrugged. "As far as I'm concerned, everything turned out the way it should have, and that's enough for me."

He sat and motioned for Carima to follow suit, which she did. Now that they were up close and she wasn't in a panic or trying desperately to avoid his attention, she got a better look at the rider. He was young, probably around the same age as her brother or maybe even a few Turns younger. With tall, messy dark hair, a thin face with just a hint of stubble, and dark eyes, he made an attractive picture. "You'll have to convey Cirinth my thanks, but I'm afraid I don't know your name."

"K'say, newly transferred from Fort, at your service. You were actually the first person I talked to at the Weyr, before even my new Wingleader. Cirinth spotted you walking across the bowl the second we arrived from _between _and insisted that I talk to you."

It was a sobering realization. If she had crossed the bowl a few minutes earlier or he had arrived just a moment later, she might never have found Mayath. "Why did you transfer here?"

"Fort's bursting at the seams with young dragons and riders. We've got three queens, you know, and they've all been producing huge clutches lately. Since Telgar only has the one queen, or I suppose two now, you haven't been getting as many new riders. With Thread coming in a few Turns, they want to even out the number of dragons in each Weyr. I imagine Telgar will be getting quite a few young transfers in the upcoming months."

"Do you miss Fort?" It must have been hard to leave everyone and everything he'd ever known to come to a brand new place. She was having a hard enough time adjusting to the changes Impressing brought, and it wasn't like she was going anywhere different!

"In some ways," K'say replied. "I miss the riders I graduated with, and I'll certainly miss most of the riders in my wing, but I _hated _my Wingleader. Actually, the feeling was kind of mutual. I spent two Turns straight doing more watch duty than any other pair in the wing. And of course he wouldn't let me transfer to another wing, because then he wouldn't be able to torment me. When they sent out the call for transfers, I was the first to volunteer."

Carima arched an eyebrow at K'say. "I feel like there's something missing from this story. Any reason why he hated you so much?"

K'say grinned and took a liberal pull from his wine glass before admitting, "I may have pulled a few pranks back in my candidate days. Most of them were directed at St'ron. I'm still surprised the Weyrleaders let me stand for as long as it took to Impress Cirinth. There were always bets going on how long it would take me to be sent back to Fort Hold in disgrace." He leaned forward and winked before continuing, "Lucky for me just about everyone, including the Weyrleaders, thinks St'ron is a sour, hidebound fool. My pranks certainly had an admiring audience, even though I probably did more latrine duty than any candidate or Weyrling in the history of Fort Weyr."

Carima was laughing outright by the end of K'say's story. The bluerider was much less intimidating now that she'd gotten to know him. She opened her mouth to ask him another question but was surprised when all that came out was a yawn. "Sorry," she apologized, covering her mouth. "Guess I'm more tired than I thought." The food sitting heavy in her stomach and the harper music were taking their toll on her.

"It's not surprising. You've had a busy day. You can go back to your weyr and I won't be too offended."

Smiling again, Carima stood and said, "Thank you, K'say, both for your company and for your actions earlier. I don't know if I'll ever be able to repay you."

"How about this. Make some time in your busy schedule and come talk to me every once in a while; take pity on a poor transfer who doesn't know many people in the Weyr yet. Deal?"

Carima nodded. "Deal." She walked through the dining caverns this time with her head up and back straight. She didn't even notice the stares and whispers that followed her out the door.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thanks go out once again to those of you who have been reviewing. However, for those of you who haven't—and there are a lot of you—(you can blame the stats page for me knowing about all of you) I'd like to once again encourage you to leave a review. Even if it's just to say "hey, I'm reading, please keep writing," I would appreciate it. Constructive criticism, even more. I wouldn't ever withhold chapters until I get more reviews or anything like that, but they _do _have the positive result of making me want to produce chapters faster. With that said, I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

**Chapter Four: Never a Dull Moment**

_8.14.198_

_6th Interval_

"Get up, Carima."

A whole line of people stood in front of Carima, all with their arms crossed and severe expressions on their faces. She spotted C'rin, Elias, the headwoman, the Weyrleaders, several of her classmates, a few drudges, and her favorite feline in the crowd.

"Come on, it's time to wake up."

"Don't let the day start without you!"

"Rise and shine."

Carima groaned and tried to escape their prying eyes. "Go 'way," she muttered thickly. "Don't want to get up yet."

_Carima, you must wake up now! I'm hungry, and the Tall One says you will be late._

That voice was one Carima couldn't ignore. She reluctantly opened her eyes and found Mayath hovering next to her bed, with Mariko already dressed and waiting near the exit with the pale, dainty Caleyth.

"It's about time you got up," Mariko said teasingly. "I thought poor Mayath was going to leave you behind and let me cut up meat for her too. You'd better hurry up if you want to finish feeding, bathing, _and _oiling her before our first class."

Carima let loose a stream of extremely unladylike curses as she pulled on the first work clothes she could find, all the while listening to Mayath's plaintive urgings for her to move faster. After splashing cold water on her face she stumbled out into the bowl with Mayath bouncing ahead, blinking as the bright sun and smothering heat assaulted her all at once. Most of the other Weyrlings had already finished feeding their dragons, and the early morning air was filled with the shouts of riders and the squeals and rumbles of playful dragonets getting bathed in the lake.

_I am so hungry,_ Mayath whined, nudging Carima's leg. _And I don't want to miss my bath before we have to go to class. Hurry up!_

"I'm going, I'm going," she muttered, resigning herself to the unpleasant task in front of her. Out of all the new tasks she'd been assigned in the past sevenday, carving up meat for Mayath was the one she despised the most. As much as the bossy green loved the dripping, steaming meat, the process invariably made Carima feel like vomiting. It didn't help that they'd been experiencing a vicious heat wave which had the entire Weyr baking even in the early morning and late at night.

_That's much better,_ Mayath commented as Carima started passing the first strips of herdbeast to her green. _I still don't understand why you hate this so much. It's good!_

"Never mind, love, you just concentrate on eating," Carima said fondly, unable to be annoyed with Mayath for long. The precocious, demanding, inquisitive, energetic dragonet was the only thing that kept her going. She existed in a constant state of wonder and admiration for her new partner and enjoyed every second they spent together.

Mayath's love was a bulwark against the anger, suspicion, and general resentment most weyrfolk seemed to hold for Carima. A few riders, mostly those who rode chromatic dragons, had expressed reserved good-will, and a few of her old friends in the lower caverns had stopped by to wish her luck, but most people avoided her company or made sure that she was well aware of their disdain and disapproval.

In just a sevenday she'd become a well-known figure. Even among the thousands of residents she was easily identified. Not for the first time Carima wished that she didn't have such bright, curly red hair, which easily alerted people to her presence. She resolved to cut the entire mop off as soon as possible, even though short hair made her look ridiculous.

"Time for your bath now," Carima told Mayath, reinforcing her words mentally, something they'd been working on in class.

_Just a little more?_ Mayath pleaded. She was easily the largest green in the clutch, nearly as large as some of the smaller blues, and to Carima it seemed like she ate twice as much as most of the young dragonets.

"I've already told you, you'll just regret over-eating in the end. You don't want to get too fat to fly, do you?"

Mayath didn't bother responding to Carima and instead turned and flounced off to the lake, where she bounded in and sent a wave of water over to Caleyth, drenching Mariko in the process. Caleyth snorted and shook water out of her eyes but didn't retaliate, instead submitting to Mariko's scrubbing.

"Sorry!" Carima called, wading out to join her friend. "She's full of energy today."

"Isn't she always?" Mariko asked dryly, pausing in her scrubbing to wring out her now-sopping hair. "I think she's got enough for both of them."

The two girls often joked that their dragons' personalities had somehow gotten switched in the egg. Caleyth was calm, reserved, and sweet-natured, never wanting to upset anyone and entirely unconscious of the rank her golden hide brought her. Mayath, on the other hand, was as imperious and haughty as any queen and liked to boss Caleyth and all her brothers and sisters around. She also insisted on being impeccably groomed at all times, a task made difficult by her messy eating habits and inability to sit still when Carima was trying to scrub her.

"You come back here right now," Carima said warningly when Mayath paddled off to say hello to her bronze brother Legeth. The first to hatch, he was the only other dragonet who seemed able to keep up with her boundless energy. Carima caught the glance of Th'ron, his young, blond-haired rider, but was unsurprised when he blushed and turned away. Like the rest of the male Weyrlings, he refused to talk to her unless it was absolutely necessary. At least _he _had the decency to look embarrassed when he snubbed her, Carima thought bitterly.

"Just ignore them," Mariko advised once Carima had finally managed to tear Mayath away from Legeth and start scrubbing her. "They'll get over it eventually."

Carima just grunted and put extra effort into her scrubbing, which made Mayath wriggle around enthusiastically. It took her twice as long to finish Mayath's bath, which meant that by the time she finished oiling the green the others had all long-since retired to the large classroom they were using.

When they walked in, T'rut was already lecturing to the class. He glanced up at their arrival and a sneer formed on his tanned face. "You're late," he barked, glaring at Carima. "That'll be extra latrine duty for you for the next sevenday. Now sit down and stop disrupting my class."

Fuming, Carima sat down in the back and took out her slate, trying not to scream in frustration. T'rut had been doing everything in his power to make her life completely miserable. She found the shunning and cold treatment of her classmates infinitely preferable to his outright hostility. But there was nothing she could do about it…if she ever wanted to graduate to the wings and fulfill the sacred duty of the dragonriders, she would have to suffer through T'rut's unfair treatment.

_Pelth's rider is upsetting you again,_ Mayath said, her eyes beginning to whirl faster in shades of yellow. _I do not understand why he is always angry with you. He should not treat you that way._

Carima knew from the way the emerald green tail was moving that Mayath was considering action. She had no doubt that the feisty green would march right to the front of the room and tackle T'rut if she thought he was treating Carima unfairly.

_No, love, he's right. We were late,_ Carima mentally assured the dragonet, sending waves of soothing emotion over their mental link. Ironically enough, T'rut was lecturing on mental control at the moment, so she didn't feel like she was missing much.

_If you say so, _she grumbled, settling down again.

Carima turned her attention back to the dour Weyrlingmaster and began assiduously copying down notes on her slate. He might not ever like her, but she refused to allow him the satisfaction of finding her efforts lacking.

It was the only course of action left to her.

_8.24.198_

_6th Interval_

Rest days. Carima had never before appreciated the time off quite as much as she did now that she'd Impressed. The life of a Weyrling was impossibly chaotic, filled with dragon care (feeding, bathing, oiling), lessons (geography, history, bonding, mental control), chores, firestone toss practice, and seemingly a hundred other activities that filled her day from dawn to dusk. Add to that the amount of time Carima spent doing extra chores that T'rut assigned to her and Carima operated in a state of constant exhaustion. Rest days had therefore become of paramount importance in her world and she treasured every second.

Today she had gotten up and fed Mayath as usual, then left the rapidly growing dragonet to sunbathe while she had a leisurely breakfast with Elias. The other girl had predictably been furious with Carima for about three days after the Hatching before forgiving her and begging to be allowed to help bathe Mayath in the near future.

Now she stood in the Weyr Lake with water up to her knees and giggled as Cirinth sent a wave of water at Mayath and knocked the young green nose over tail. Mayath had been thrilled to be getting a bath with an actual _adult _dragon, but seemed to forget that he was much, much bigger than she was.

"He's being very patient with her," Carima told K'say as Mayath righted herself and pounced on Cirinth's tail from behind. The green was fascinated by his longer-than-average tale that faded so that it was almost white by the end. The rest of his body was a light sky blue and Carima thought he was particularly handsome. He also had a good sense of humor, like his rider, to put up with Mayath's energetic attentions.

"Are you kidding me? Cirinth loves this kind of thing. He's a lot like me in that respect; he looks full-grown but he's really just a baby underneath it all."

"Not many of her clutchmates can keep up. She's got too much energy and plays far too rough. Her best friends are the bronzes! Well, and Caleyth. She seems to think Caleyth needs to be protected because she's so gentle and quiet."

"I can imagine. She's definitely got a lot of spunk."

"If by 'spunk' you mean she's bossy, egotistical, and demanding," Carima grumbled, but she was secretly pleased by the compliment. Mayath didn't even respond to her rider's complaints, as she knew Carima loved her completely and wouldn't have her any other way. After all, she _was_ perfect. So was Carima. That's why Mayath had chosen her. They were perfect together and always would be.

_I like the Little One. She is fun to play with and will grow up to be the best green in the Weyr, _Cirinth commented to both K'say and Carima. She jumped a little when the foreign voice entered her head, sounding oddly similar to K'say, but she smiled anyway.

"Thank you, Cirinth, I think so too."

_Look who's here, Carima! It's Legeth. _Mayath was thrilled to see her bronze brother arrive with Th'ron in tow. The two dragonets immediately began splashing each other vigorously. The dark-hued bronze was significantly larger, but that never deterred Mayath.

"That's Legeth," Carima explained to K'say, who was taking advantage of Mayath's distraction to start scrubbing Cirinth. "She just adores him."

"Is that his rider over there, the little blond?" When Carima nodded, K'say called out, "That's a fine looking bronze you've got there. Come on over," he added and waved at the boy.

Carima felt guilty as Th'ron blushed and made his way over. He obviously didn't want to be anywhere near her, but couldn't exactly disobey a direct order from a full wingrider.

"Good day K'say, Carima. My duty to Cirinth and Mayath." Legeth had obviously filled his rider in on K'say's identity.

"Th'ron, is it? Legeth certainly looks like he's enjoying himself. He and Mayath seem to get along well." The two dragonets were currently enjoying a chaotic game of chase.

"Oh yes," Th'ron said softly, cheeks still pink but seeming to loosen up a little. "Legeth loves to play with Mayath. He says all the others can't keep up."

Carima was about to reply when K'say said, "Good. Where are you from, Th'ron? You've got a Hold-bred look, but I've been known to be wrong about things like that before."

The conversation continued on in that vein for a while as Th'ron revealed that he was from Telgar Hold and had been planning to apprentice as a harper when a search dragon snatched him away to the Weyr. He was fourteen turns old, liked to train canines, and preferred singing to playing instruments. Carima became increasingly frustrated as every time she opened her mouth to speak K'say jumped in ahead of her. She couldn't imagine why he was excluding her so thoroughly and lavishing attention on the younger boy.

_Just wait, _Mayath advised, taking time from her chase game to speak to Carima. _Cirinth says his rider knows what he is doing and that you should be patient._

Carima sighed gustily, wondering what K'say had up his sleeve. _All right then. I'll wait. But you need to come over so I can scrub you. _When she felt Mayath's resistance she added, _You want to be pretty for Legeth and Cirinth, don't you?_

_Yes, of course. You can scrub me now, Carima,_ she allowed magnanimously.

Carima giggled and set about her task, keeping half her attention on the conversation between the other two riders and the rest listening to Mayath chatter on and on about how much she _loved _playing with Legeth and how _wonderful_ Cirinth was. At least one of them had no trouble making friends, Carima thought bitterly.

It wasn't until the next day that Carima realized what K'say had been up to. She was running late as usual in the morning, desperately trying to carve up enough meat to satisfy Mayath. Th'ron approached out of nowhere and said shyly, "I'll help you cut up some meat, if you'd like. I've already scrubbed Legeth and just need to oil him, so I've got a bit of extra time. If you want my help, I mean," he finished hurriedly, looking down at his feet.

Carima surveyed the younger boy and then grinned. "I would love some help, Th'ron, thank you."

The boy seemed to blossom under her approval and with his help Carima actually managed to show up to class in time, much to T'rut's annoyed surprise. Th'ron marched in behind her and determinedly sat in the seat to her left while Mariko smiled in a satisfied way on her right.

_Remind me to thank K'say, would you?_ She asked Mayath before hiding her own grin and bending her head once again to the slate.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: I'm very grateful for the reviews and advice, particularly the continued comments from Brian McMahon. I've tried to develop more of Carima's feelings about being a rider as well as some of the other Weyrlings in the class. My pattern for the course of Weyrling training is taken from the Weyrling training guide from Cibryen Weyr, the RP group I'm involved with. Coming up next: the first trip between.

**Chapter Five: First Flight**

_1.6.199_

_6th Interval_

"Thank Faranth _that's _over," Carima sighed and collapsed into her favorite battered armchair in the Weyrling barracks common room. They'd been outside for the past hour, battling raging winds and driving rain to complete their first firestone toss of full sacks. Well, they _attempted_ to complete it, anyway. With the wind knocking the sacks out of line and the rain making it impossible for the Weyrlings to see, along with the added weight, the exercise had been a complete disaster. T'rut had kept them at it for nearly an hour before admitting the inevitable and canceling the rest of the toss, even unbending enough to allow the Weyrlings the rest of the afternoon off: a rare occurrence.

Carima had headed to the weyr she shared with Mariko and changed out of her sodden clothes before entering the common room with Mayath trailing behind. Now she sat slouched in the corner armchair with Th'ron, the twin brownriders P'larn and P'lack, and L'tad, a bluerider. The corner had long ago been established as their area of the common room. At first, when Th'ron had finally cajoled Carima into relaxing after class with the rest of the Weyrlings a few months ago, it had been theirs by default, because the rest of the boys stubbornly avoided her company. Months of constant companionship and sharing the same rigors of training had helped the boys adjust to Carima's presence more than anything she did herself (since she refused to make an extra effort to get in their good graces; they could hold a grudge if they chose), and now no one even glanced at her as she walked in. Everyone else was just as exhausted as she was.

"You know what this rain means?" L'tad asked mournfully, glancing around at their little group. "It means they won't be able to fly tomorrow. This rain will keep coming down and they won't be able to take their first flights."

"Oh lighten up, L'tad," P'lack said bracingly. "I bet this will blow over in a couple hours and the weather'll be perfect tomorrow. Nothing's going to stop Shirth from flying tomorrow, let me tell you."

"Tellineth either," P'larn put in unsurprisingly. The two sixteen-turn-old boys were nearly impossible to tell apart and seemed to share the same mind. It was lucky that their browns were vastly different, one stocky and dark and the other a light tan with elegant lines, or nobody would ever be able to identify the correct boy. Luckily, Carima had noticed that P'lack had a slightly thicker dusting of freckles on his nose and was therefore able to (mostly) keep them separate. Only the dragons seemed to have no trouble, and if she was ever confused, Mayath impatiently set her straight.

"I think the rain will stop," Th'ron agreed quietly. "It's been clear all week and it came up all of a sudden, which usually means it'll end quickly enough. It _can't _rain tomorrow."

Carima desperately hoped Th'ron was right. Their dragons had been working on wing strengthening exercises for ages and they all seemed to be anxiously waiting for the moment of their first flights. It was the first necessary step to take on the path to actually having their riders aloft along with them. Then going _between, _then drilling with the wings, then graduation, and then…

Thread. All the signs were clear. Thread would begin falling very soon. The Weryleaders estimated that they still had a good turn until they would have to start assiduously watching for the first Fall, but in all reality it could begin any time. Carima was well aware that their Weyrling class would probably be the first to be ferrying firestone during actual Threadfall in two-hundred and fifty turns. It was both thrilling and completely terrifying.

She still wasn't quite sure how she felt about the idea of actually being aloft with the wings when the time came. She'd never been particularly brave, or athletic, or extraordinarily talented in any way other than her cooking and organization skills. None of that would do any good when she was flying at high speeds, trying to defend Pern and save her own skin (and that of her dragon) at the same time. Failure was a real and extremely likely outcome, and in this case, failure probably meant her own life.

"Do you ever worry?" The words burst out of her mouth before she could think better of them. These fears she normally kept buried beneath a calm and confident surface. It wouldn't do to alarm either Mayath or the younger boys, who never seemed to think beyond the glorious moment of graduation into the wings.

"What, that your great lump of a green won't be able to make it into the air?" P'larn teased. Mayath was still the biggest green of the clutch, though her blue, brown, and bronze brothers now dwarfed her.

"No," she said slowly when she noticed Th'ron watching her carefully. He had heard the real anxiety in her words and wouldn't let the matter drop if she tried to turn her concerns into a joke. "I meant after we graduate, once Thread starts falling. Don't you ever worry about what's going to happen?" She didn't need to elaborate on the "what." They'd all been thoroughly lectured on the dangers of threadscores by the dragonhealers and shown pictures of particularly gruesome scores in the healer's records. It was a fact of life every rider had to face, but they'd never discussed it before.

The boys were silent for a moment, the mood sobering dramatically. She hadn't meant to bring them down, not on the evening of their dragons' first flights, which should have been happy and expectant. She was about to hastily change the subject when Th'ron said, "Of course I've thought about it. I mean, I think we all have. But we all knew it might happen when we accepted our search and became candidates. It's not like all the riders before us, who knew it'd be a long time before Thread started falling again. I think Legeth's worth the danger, and at least we'll be doing something important. As long as we pay attention in training and do our best…I think we'll be ok."

Carima was surprised at Th'ron's eloquent response. He rarely ever talked that much in a group setting, usually only relaxing in one-on-one encounters. The others were all murmuring in agreement.

"I'd rather be doing this than have stayed at the hold," P'lack said emphatically. "We're the last of five sons; we never would have had a chance of inheriting anything, and our father would have probably sent us off to some craft without even asking us what we wanted, and he probably would have separated us. He always thought we were "too dependent" on each other. At least now we'll be doing some good, and no one can tell us what to do." P'larn didn't add anything, though he muttered a disparaging comment under his breath.

Carima didn't dispute either points, but there was still something bothering her. "At least you had the chance to accept or reject your search…I said "no" and still ended up here. Not that I would give up Mayath for anything," she said hastily when she noticed a green tail twitching anxiously, "but I didn't really have a choice, did I?"

"Would you really rather have spent your time in the kitchens?" P'lack asked, voice slightly sarcastic. "Washing dishes isn't exactly the most exciting thing in the world. You would really give up the chance to be riding a fighting dragon and doing something important and exciting to be a lower caverns worker?"

Carima shrugged. She didn't think they would ever understand the appeal her old life still held for her. There was something rewarding about being the one person who was best suited to organize and run a place as confusing, complicated, and diverse as a Weyr. It wasn't a task just anyone could do. Now she might be the only female greenrider in the Weyr, but she was still just a greenrider. She would never be a wingsecond or a wingleader, never have a clutch and help provide for the future of the Weyr. Mayath wouldn't even have the stamina to fly a full Fall. They were important members of the wing for their speed and agility, certainly, but they would never be leaders.

"It's all well and good for you to be excited," L'tad said in his typical sour way. "You three all have the chance to get rank. Browns can be wingseconds, and bronzes almost always end up as wingleaders. You could even be Weyrleader one day," he said pointedly to Th'ron, whose pale cheeks flushed at the suggestion. "What do blue and greenriders have to look forward to? Just doing the grunt work all the time. At least I'm going to be a dragonhealer; that's important. Carima doesn't have _anything _to work for."

"Thanks, L'tad," Carima snapped sarcastically, but she was actually surprised that L'tad felt the same way. He'd never mentioned feelings like that before, and he was not one to hide his dissatisfaction away like Carima. Complaining was his favorite activity.

This threw the boys for a loop, until P'lack brightened considerably. "I know! You can be Weyrlingmaster one day. Everyone knows you're the best one to explain things when T'rut doesn't make sense, and you're definitely more patient than he is. I bet you'd be a _great _Weyrlingmaster."

"Yeah!" P'larn agreed emphatically. "The way you teach us how to memorize maps and coordinates is much better than T'rut. When Th'ron becomes Weyrleader, he can make you Weyrlingmaster." Despite Th'ron's insistence that he wouldn't even dream of becoming Weyrleader, the other boys chose to ignore him. They, at least, had every confidence in their friend.

It was an idea, Carima mused. Having to organize classes and teach appealed to her talents, and she _was_ always helping her classmates with their work.

_What do you think? _She silently asked Mayath as the boys argued with Th'ron about his potential. _Would you like to teach the young dragons some day?_

_I'd rather just flame Thread,_ Mayath replied, voice sounding sleepy. She'd barely been following the conversation, curled up as she was in a tight lump next to Legeth.

_But maybe one day? After we've been fighting for a long time._ She projected an image of them in the future, showing them as a seasoned fighting pair, proudly bearing the scars of Thread.

_Maybe. I know I'd be a good teacher. I'm good at everything._

_That you are,_ Carima said affectionately, then let the matter drop. Mayath would promptly forget about it, as tired as she was. But it was enough motivation for Carima to forget her worries and re-join the conversation, which had predictably returned to the upcoming flights.

This time she wasn't thinking about the future, just living in the moment.

_1.7.199_

_6th Interval_

"All right. Greenriders step this way, please."

The Weyr bowl was complete chaos. The entire class had spilled out excitedly into the chilly but blessedly clear morning air, boys chattering and dragons rumbling. The atmosphere was one of nervous anticipation. Along with T'rut, there were three other riders of a bronze, brown, and green each. With such a large class, T'rut had asked for volunteers for the other colors, while he handled the blues. It was always better for the dragons to learn from adults of their own color.

Carima obediently followed the tall, thin greenrider who was calling to them. Their group was naturally the largest, with seventeen. She waved goodbye to her friends, who all dispersed to their color groups except for Mariko, who went along with the bronzes. They were the closest in size to the young queen, who though still delicate had long since outstripped them in height and length.

"Come closer, come closer, I'm not going to bite any of you." Their instructor for the day, A'lexin, seemed to be cheerful and pleasant. He was also fairly young, which helped set Carima at ease. The younger riders always seemed to have an easier time accepting her than the older ones. "Now. Today, as you well know, is the day of your dragons' first flights. It's very important that they pay attention to Toreth's demonstration, but I have every confidence that they will be successful. If you'll just direct your attention to Toreth, we'll begin."

The green in question was a deep, dark green that reminded Carima of trees in the middle of summer. She was also fairly large, which gave Carima hope that Mayath would have no trouble with the exercise.

_Are you paying attention?_ She questioned her green. She wanted to make sure Mayath was fully focused.

_Yes,_ she replied immediately, eyes trained on the older green.

"Now, everyone, the most important thing for your dragons to remember is to give a big push when they take off. Their wings should be strong enough once they get in the air, but they need to clear the ground or else their wings might clip the ground as they try to get aloft. Take my word for it, that can be a nasty injury. Once in the air, they should use steady beats to get some altitude and then fly once back and forth across the bowl. Then they should try to land on that X," he said, pointing to the large X that had been marked on the ground. Now, Toreth will demonstrate and then we can begin."

The green immediately launched from the ground and rose quickly in the air with strong wingbeats. She effortlessly glided once across the bowl and back and then landed neatly on the X, backwinging until she was perfectly lined up with the mark.

"Thank you, Toreth," A'lexin said fondly. "Now—who would like to go first?" he turned back to the waiting Weyrlings.

Now that the moment had finally arrived, his question was greeted by silence. No one seemed to want to be the first to try the unknown in case of failure.

Carima noticed movement next to her and knew what was about to happen even before Mayath said haughtily to the waiting greens and their riders, _You're all being a bunch of wherries. _I'll _go first, and show you how to do it. _

"Very good, Mayath, the air is yours," A'exin replied, winking cheerfully at Carima, who was flushing vigorously in embarrassment. Everyone had long since gotten used to Mayath's airs, but she was still ashamed on occasion by her rudeness.

_All right, love, go ahead,_ Carima said, stepping to the front of the group so she could see every second of Mayath's flight.

As soon as Carima gave her permission, Mayath gave a mighty heave and jumped off the ground. Carima cringed as her wings narrowly brushed the ground on the first downsweep. She gained elevation slowly, jerkily rising higher in the air. She had none of the elegance Toreth had demonstrated, but she was _in the air. _Carima's heart was beating anxiously and her palms were sweating, but she was filled with amazement and pride as she watched her emerald green rising.

"That's high enough, Mayath," A'lexin called. "Now try flying across the bowl."

_Look, Carima! I'm doing it,_ Mayath announced triumphantly as she made slow progress across the bowl. The air was filled with awkward young dragons, but Carima was proud to see that Mayath was flying much more easily than some of them.

_Turn around now,_ she said anxiously as Mayath reached the far end of the bowl. The green seemed to have some difficulty on the turn, not quite sure how to make her body turn. She eventually succeeded in making a very wide, ponderous turn, losing some of her altitude, but she had even more confidence in the return flight, wings beating steadily.

"Now land on the X, Mayath," A'lexin called when she returned to the group.

_I don't want to stop yet! I'm not even tired a little bit. Can't I keep flying?_

_No you may not, _Carima answered firmly. _The others all want a chance too, and you will come down this instant. _

_All right. _Reluctantly Mayath returned to the ground, aiming for the X but not really able to control the landing. She ended up in a heap quite a distance away from the X. Upon realization that she had missed her target, she lifted her tail and slapped it on the very end of the mark, stirring up a cloud of dust in the process.

"Very good, Mayath!" A'lexin praised, leading a wave of clapping from the assembled Weyrlings.

"You were wonderful!" Carima rushed over to her green and flung her arms around her neck. Despite Mayath's insistence that she hadn't been tired, she could feel her muscles trembling from the exertion. _You are the very best dragon ever,_ she added privately.

_Of course. And you are the best rider, and soon we will be flying together. _

Carima just responded with a wave of affection as they moved back to the main group to watch the rest of the flights. With Mayath keeping in contact with the other dragons, Carima was able to see Legeth, Caleyth, Shirth, Tellineth, and Werth, L'tad's blue, make their first flights as well.

Mayath was right. Now they really were on their way.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Presenting for your reading enjoyment Chapter Six, in which our young friends go _between _for the first time. As always, please share your thoughts/reactions to the chapter. There might be a bit of a delay before the next chapter, as I'm going on vacation next week, but I'll try to do some writing while I'm at the beach so I have some chapters to post when I get home!

**Chapter Six: _Between_**

_6.18.199_

_6th Interval_

They took up nearly half of one of the smaller tables in the dining caverns, grouped around one end with full plates in front of them. No one was really eating though. Occasionally someone would pick up a piece of bread or stir half-heartedly at the crisp greens, but it was all for show. The Weyrlings anxiously awaiting the unknown couldn't stomach food at all, and the adult riders who knew what they were facing the next day were similarly disinclined to eat.

"The last class, they lost _five_ the first day alone, and another three later on. When there're only twenty-four dragons in a clutch…those odds aren't very good."

"Thank you, L'tad, for those very reassuring statistics," P'lack said in a strangled voice. His face was pale as a sheet beneath the dusting of freckles, and Carima had a feeling that her face looked the same.

They could all do the math. Approximately 1/3 of all Weyrlings never made it out of training, and the majority of the casualties occurred when they attempted to go _between _for the first time: the exact task they would be facing the next morning. Even if an individual managed to make it through unscathed, the chances of losing a close friend were unbearably high.

Th'ron let out a tiny, unhappy sigh and fiddled with his now-cold mug of klah. "What's it like? I mean, I know what _between _is like, but how is it different to go for the first time on your own dragon?" He directed these questions to C'rin and K'say, the only full riders at the table.

C'rin mulled over his words before answering. "It's…different than just being transported. The sensation is the same, of course, but there's so much more to it. You have to hold that visualization more clearly in your head than you've ever done in practice. Your dragon has to know every detail of where he's going and be able to concentrate on it completely. Together, you have to be sure of your destination and completely confident in the outcome or else you'll lose control as soon as you go _between_. There was a boy in my class, rode a little green, and they were confident as can be. Volunteered to go first and just never came back. It took a while for us to realize they never would, and then the dragons started keening…" He trailed off, lost in the potency of the memory. His eyes went out of focus and Carima knew Shelth was giving his rider what comfort he could.

"It's not all bad though," K'say offered hopefully. "We only lost two in my class, and both of the riders were brainless wherries. As long as you stay confident and focused, you should have no trouble. And the relief and excitement of finally being able to go _between _is well worth the effort. Pretty soon you'll be able to blink in a moment to anywhere on Pern. Just think of that when you start feeling nervous.

He was trying to help, but Carima didn't feel like K'say's encouragement was very useful. There was nowhere else on Pern she would ever want to go…Telgar had always been her home. She would much rather stick to flying straight and not risk her life, or that of her precious green, in such a dangerous adventure.

_Going _between _is important. We need it to be able to flame Thread. I will not lose us _between. _Our friends will also succeed. It's what we're meant to do. _

_Are you gossiping with the others? _Carima questioned affectionately. She could imagine the dragons gathered together in the common room, discussing the following day's events just as their riders were.

_Of course. What else do we have to do when our riders go where we can't go?_ There was a hint of bitterness in Mayath's voice. She had been petitioning Carima since she was practically out of the shell to be allowed to go to the dining caverns and try human food in a human environment, but Carima had refused to let her when she was small for fear of giving her indigestion. Now she was far too big to fit. Mayath didn't have the best of memories most of the time, but she always seemed to carry that resentment when Carima retreated to the dining caverns for meals.

_We'll be done soon, _Carima promised. _We'll all want to get a lot of sleep before tomorrow. _

No need to chance things because they'd stayed up talking away the night, Carima thought negatively. Despite her dragon's confidence, she still felt as if she might throw up if she tried to speak.

They were all showing their nerves in different ways. L'tad was even more pessimistic than usual, reciting all the gruesome _betweening _incidents he could remember, including the hideous story known by every Weyrling of the pair who ended up embedded in the stony Weyr walls. P'lack talked more than ever, dominating the conversation with questions and speculations, while P'larn stuck even closer to his more verbose brother. Th'ron seemed to have shrunk into himself, the inches he'd picked up over a full turn of Weyrling training melting away until he looked just like the small, scared boy he used to be. Mariko was as silent as Carima, but she was in constant motion, tearing up her napkin, fiddling with her hands, or inspecting her nails. The nervous energy probably hid her keen mind running in frantic circles, trying to remember every lesson they'd ever had about going _between. _

"I think I'm going to go to bed," Carima suddenly announced. She couldn't stand it a second longer, sitting and wondering if it would be the last time the group of friends ever gathered together. She would only make herself sick with worry if she stayed. She needed to be with Mayath now.

Before anyone could answer she bolted from the caverns. She made it halfway to her shared weyr before she had to stop and let out a thin trickle of vomit. She'd hardly eaten anything in the past sevenday, it seemed, so there was little to come up.

K'say found her there and helped pull back her unruly curls, gently rubbing her back as he did so. "It's no shame to be scared," he said when she was finished. They sat on the hard floor and leaned against the wall. Their arms brushed against each other and Carima enjoyed the comfort of human touch. Weyrling training prohibited any sexual relationships, and it had been a long time since she'd been that close to someone, even if it was an entirely innocent encounter.

"I'm not ashamed," Carima replied quietly. "I just don't like to worry the others. It's always been easier to be the strong one and forget about my own fears or weaknesses. If they see me breaking down, it might make things worse for them."

"Regardless of what you do, they will either survive or fail on their own. There's nothing you can do to help."

"And that's the hardest part!" Carima cried out, knocking her fist against the wall in frustration. "I can teach them how to read maps and do their figures and learn coordinates. I can put in extra practice time when they're not completing the firestone toss. I can even cover for them if they show up to class late. But I can't do anything now. We could all come back, or we could all be lost, and it's not up to me. This time it's just about what Mayath and I can do. And it scares me."

"I'm scared too. It's been a long time since I've known so many Weyrlings in one class. I don't want to lose any of you." He cocked his head and a ghost of a smile crossed his face. "Cirinth says you and Mayath will come home safe because he doesn't want to lose his Little One. Faranth forbid you disappoint him!"

"We won't," Carima replied with a hint of a grin. They sat there for a moment longer and it was only when a passerby gave them a strange look that she realized how odd they must look, sequestered together in the shadows. If T'rut found her in such a compromising position with a male rider, no matter how harmless the encounter actually was…

"I should really get back to Mayath," she said firmly, standing up decisively. "Thank you, K'say."

"My pleasure," the young bluerider answered, watching her affectionately. "I'll see you tomorrow night for dinner."

Carima nodded and continued down the path to the weyr. Mayath was waiting for her to arrive, eyes spinning slowly in the dark weyr. For the first time in months, Carima avoided her bed and curled up next to Mayath on her couch. The heat from the green's body would keep Carima warm, and the comfort of physical connection would lull her to sleep and make the long hours until morning melt away.

She was asleep in seconds.

_6.19.199_

_6th Interval_

"All right, everyone. I want you all to listen to me very carefully. Today's the day you're going _between _for the first time, and I want to make it perfectly clear that some of you will not be coming back. Going _between _is extremely dangerous, and I've never yet had a class where we didn't lose at least one pair. However, I have every confidence in you today. You've all mastered your visualizations and the proper protocol for going _between. _You're ready for the next step, and I'm very proud of you."

Carima was shocked. The taciturn, grouchy Weyrlingmaster actually seemed to be showing emotion. There was a rough quality to his voice that was different than his usual gruffness, as if he was struggling to hold back his feelings. Of course, it didn't mean he felt that way about _her_, but it was nice to know that T'rut wasn't a complete tunnelsnake all the time.

"Now, I need a volunteer. Who wants to go first?"

The day they'd flown for the first time with their dragons, there had nearly been a brawl over who went first. The bronzeriders all felt like _they _should be first, never mind any riders of the other colors who might have wanted to go. T'rut had neatly solved the dilemma by picking one of the calmer blueriders to start things off, but the day had been filled with excitement and anticipation.

The atmosphere couldn't have been different now. The riders were solemn and quiet, not speaking to their neighbors and watching T'rut anxiously. Even the young dragons were subdued, with no display of their normal high spirits. No one seemed particularly inclined to volunteer to go first. There was a slow but steady shuffling of feet as the young riders tried to disappear from the front of the group. If T'rut could see them, T'rut could pick them to go first.

"I'll go."

Carima bit back an involuntary gasp as a familiar voice rang out over the quiet bowl. Mariko stepped to the front of the group, looking tense but resolute.

"Very well. You and Caleyth will meet us in the air and then go _between _to the other end of the bowl before flying straight back. Make sure Caleyth checks her coordinates with Pelth before you go."

Mariko nodded before climbing up Caleyth's golden shoulder and onto her neck. The queen now dwarfed all of her clutchmates, though she would never be as large as some gold dragons, and she had retained her delicate pale coloring. With Linneth getting older, the hopes of populating the Weyr for the upcoming Pass rested on Caleyth.

Carima couldn't be entirely surprised that Mariko volunteered to go first. The other girl preferred to lead by example and actually _do _things, in contrast to Carima's explanations and verbal encouragement. One day Mariko would be Weyrwoman, and it was appropriate that she was acting as an example to the others.

That didn't mean Carima was _glad_ she was going first. She didn't know what she would do if she lost the girl she'd lived with for an entire Turn and come to rely on for her easy company and constant support. Not to mention what losing a queen would do to all the dragons of the Weyr. Since her Impression of Mayath, a few of the older riders had died and their dragons had gone _between._ Every time the mournful keening of the dragons had haunted her sleep, and Mayath's hide had been tinged with gray for days. Losing any dragon was terrible, but losing a queen would be much worse.

Carima stood close to Mayath and they both watched Caleyth take off and climb until she was level with the indigo blue Pelth.

_She will be fine, _Mayath told Carima, but she held her breath anyway when Caleyth and Mariko abruptly disappeared.

1…

2…

3…

"Yes!" Carima pumped her fist in the air when a glittery golden figure appeared at the other end of the bowl. The Weyrlings let out a ragged cheer to release tension as the queen began flying back to the group.

"That was great," Carima said when Mariko had hopped off of Caleyth and bounced over. The two shared a hug, and Carima could feel the chill of _between _still lingering on her friend's skin. Caleyth too was excited and enthusiastically butted Mayath, sending her smaller sister sprawling.

Now that the first pair had emerged successfully, the other Weyrlings seemed to be more confident. The bronzeriders pushed their way to the front and commenced arguing over who would go next. Carima was somewhat surprised that Th'ron, normally so quiet and non-confrontational, managed to go second out of the whole group. She was completely unsurprised, however, that he was as successful as Mariko. The young bronzerider was one of the smartest people she knew, and always completed training exercises perfectly.

Once all the bronzes had gone, the browns naturally went next. P'lack had been near the front of the group and his Shirth bounded into the air eagerly. P'lack waved cheerfully to those on the ground and then they blinked _between._

Carima was counting along with the rest, and when the mental numbers stretched to five, then six, then seven, her gut contracted. She knew without hearing Mayath say mournfully, _Shirth is no more,_ that they were lost. The hair-raising sound of the dragons honoring their dead came from every corner of the Weyr, but above the general din a primal shriek pierced the gloom.

"_P'lack_!" P'larn collapsed on the ground, writhing and screaming as the realization that his twin was gone hit him. Tellineth hovered over his rider and a series of painful groans emitted from the brown as he tried to protect P'larn and mourn Shirth at the same time.

The shocked faces of the other Weyrlings blurred as Carima and Mariko rushed over to P'larn's fallen figure. Their dragons were close behind, and Carima knew Caleyth in particular would be putting aside her own pain to help the grieving pair.

"Move over, Tellineth, we need to get to P'larn if we want to help him," Carima shouted over the crying of the dragons. It took her pummeling the hard shoulder before the dun-colored dragon inched over enough to let the two girls through to P'larn. His face was covered in dirt except where a constant flow of tears streaked down in two trails.

"What will I do without him?" P'larn asked hysterically, his eyes wild and bloodshot. "He was always the leader. He took care of me. _I can't live without him._"

Tellineth bellowed at this statement and his eyes whirled red as he butted his rider in the shoulder. Every one of them heard his vehement statement, _I am here, P'larn, and you will not leave me!_

"Out of the way, all of you!" T'rut's voice was constricted and fierce as his dragon landed and he shoved his way through the crowd. "Get ahold of yourself, boy," he said, gripping P'larn by the shoulders. "Let your dragon help you. I know none of us can understand what you're dealing with, but you can't shut him out."

Despite T'rut's harsh words Carima could tell that the Weyrlingmaster was grieving deeply at the loss of one of his charges. Somehow, having the Weyrlingmaster tell him what to do cut off P'larn's wailing and gave him a measure of control over himself. The Weyrlings watched silently as T'rut and Tellineth accompanied P'larn out of the bowl and back to the weyr they had until now shared with P'lack and Shirth.

_They did not visualize correctly, _Mayath told Carima sadly. _They were very confident, and they did not double check with Pelth's rider. They got lost and could not find their way back. _

Carima relayed this information to Mariko, whose eyes were watery. Carima could feel tears dripping down her own face, and when Th'ron and L'tad made their way through the crush the four of them came together in a messy hug.

"It wasn't supposed to happen this way," L'tad said brokenly. "I knew we'd lose some, but I didn't think it would be any of us. Not really."

"I know…you feel so invincible when you fly, but even one mistake can get you killed," Th'ron agreed.

After that they lapsed into silence. There was really nothing else to say. T'rut returned in about ten minutes. "The Weyrwoman is with P'larn," he announced, "but he won't be rejoining us. I need a volunteer to go next."

The Weyrlings exchanged panicked looks. After losing P'lack, absolutely no one wanted to go next. Even the dragons seemed nervous at the idea of attempting to go _between._ The loss of one of their own had revealed the danger of the exercise far more than any of T'rut's dry lectures.

_Shirth would want us to go, _Mayath said softly. _No matter what happened to him, we must still go. We're meant to do it. _

Mayath was right. "We'll go, sir," Carima said softly. Every head swiveled in her direction, but she looked straight ahead, focusing on the familiar face of the Weyrlingmaster. If she looked at any of her friends, she might lose her nerve. She didn't think she'd ever be able to muster the courage to finish the exercise unless she did it now.

"Very well," T'rut said with none of his normal antipathy. "When you get in the air, make sure you check your coordinates with me before you go _between._"

Once Carima was securely strapped into the harness, Mayath leapt skyward, though without her normal exuberance. Once they were hovering next to Pelth, Carima closed her eyes and recreated with exacting precision their targeted destination across the bowl. Once she was satisfied with the image, she shared it with Mayath and told the green to send it to Pelth.

_Pelth says our image is clear. We can go _between _when we are ready._

"Then let's go," Carima said before she had time to regret the decision.

The world disappeared before she even had time to take a breath. The bitter cold penetrated through the thick leathers and chilled her to the bone. She couldn't feel Mayath between her legs or the harness straps or any part of her body; just the cold and the utter, echoing silence.

_I am with you, _came Mayath's voice, and then they burst into the sunlit bowl, exactly where they had visualized it, and Carima realized she was crying again.

"We did it," she said, reaching down to thump Mayath's shoulder as the green stroked smoothly back across the bowl to the waiting Weyrlings.

"Well done," T'rut called to them, and for once Carima felt like the Weyrlingmaster was actually proud of her.

Mariko and Th'ron met her with hugs when she jumped down, and the other Weyrlings offered their congratulations. They settled down to watch the rest of the class go, hoping that the worst was over.

It wasn't. By the end of the lesson they lost three other Weyrlings, two greens and a blue. It was horrible every time, the dawning realization that they wouldn't reappear and the dragons' lament echoing throughout the Weyr. All the dragons' hides were gray and dull by the end of the lesson and their eyes were laced with agitated red.

Carima leaned against Mayath's side as the last pair appeared at the other end of the bowl. _We made it, _she told the green softly.

_Yes. I told you we would. _

_But not everyone made it…_

_No. It is sad, and we will not forget them, but we will continue to do what we must. Thread will be coming soon. _

_Yes. _

Thread would be coming soon, and they would probably lose more friends in the coming days. For now, though, they had survived, and that was all they could ask for.


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: I apologize for the delay getting this chapter out. I was on vacation and then working and didn't have much time to write. Anyway, here it is. This chapter deals with sexual situations, though there's nothing explicit at all. Just consider yourselves warned. Please, please, _please _leave feedback. It's both useful and inspirational. With that said, enjoy!

**Chapter Seven: Fly**

_10.10.199_

_You've missed a spot on my left wing, right by the tip. Get it._

"Maybe I wouldn't be missing spots if you would stop prancing around the lake and stay still for more than five minutes," Carima replied in an acidic tone as her finicky green continued to frolic in the water. Mayath had been completely impossible all week, refusing to settle down for baths yet insisting on being bathed and oiled every single day.

"She sure looks like she's having fun," a vaguely familiar voice commented.

Carima took her attention away from Mayath and saw that the voice belonged to Dr'vid, one of the Wingseconds of Red Flight, the wing she'd been drilling with for the past month.

The tall rider sent his bronze into the lake as Carima said dryly, "Oh yes, she certainly is." Then remembering her manners she added, "My duty to Brizerth, Sir." It still felt slightly odd calling a rider only a few turns older than she was "sir," but she wasn't about to forget protocol when she was still under T'rut's watchful eye. His attitude towards her had loosened somewhat, but he was still a tough old tunnelsnake even on his best days.

"Please, _please _don't call me 'sir' when we're not in drill. It makes me feel old," Dr'vid said and shuddered theatrically.

"All right then, Dr'vid," Carima said with a little bemusement. Most bronzeriders were rather strict about getting the respect due to their rank, but then, she hadn't met many young bronzeriders other than the ones in her own class. "Brizerth looks like he's enjoying the warm weather."

"I think they all are," Dr'vid said, "but if we don't get some rain soon this lake's going to dry right up and then they won't get baths at all."

"Faranth forbid," Carima laughed as she got back to scrubbing Mayath.

_Brizerth is a fine looking bronze, _Mayath commented as she curved her neck around to look at the other dragon coyly.

_Excuse me?_ Carima spluttered silently as the green continued to watch the dark-hued bronze splash around with his rider. He _was_ a handsome dragon, mostly dark bronze with lighter streaks down his back and heavily muscled hind legs and shoulders. Still, this was the first time Carima had ever heard Mayath show interest in male dragons in _that way._ Carima had been expecting it to start sometime, since T'rut had said that greens normally reached sexual maturity when they were around one turn old, but somehow the change still caught her off guard.

_I said, he's a fine looking bronze. Very fine, _she said with the draconic equivalent of a giggle.

Her dragon was giggling. Carima set down the scrub brush and pulled Mayath's head away from the other dragon so she could look her straight in the eyes. _You're not going to rise now…are you?_ She was definitely not ready to deal with her dragon's first mating flight. Maybe she wouldn't ever be, but at least if she had an inkling of when it was going to occur she could try to prepare.

_No, not yet, _the green said calmly. _But soon._

Right. Carima tried to organize her scrambled brain as she led Mayath out of the lake so she could dry off and then get oiled. No wonder she'd been so insistent about looking her best lately, not to mention her flighty behavior and unpredictable moods.

"Carima?"

Carima blinked and realized that Dr'vid had said something that she'd missed entirely. "Sorry, Mayath and I were talking. Can you repeat that?"

"Sure," the bronzerider said tolerantly. "I was just asking how you were feeling about flying in Red Flight. We're the first wing you've drilled with, right?"

"Yes," Carima answered, "and I'll admit it's been a little intimidating, but I like it. I think we're both glad to be done with most of the Weyrling drills and getting into real flying. Seems like we might actually make it to graduation now."

"Mayath's a good flyer," Dr'vid complimented. "You'd think she might not be as agile as some greens since she's so much bigger, but she's a very strong flyer. I think sheer power makes up for her being slightly slower in the air."

"Thank you," Carima said proudly, always glad to hear good things about her precious green. They _were_ doing rather well drilling with the wings so far. They still had a month to drill with one of the lower flights and then a third month drilling with one of the upper flights, but then it would be time to graduate and enter a wing for real.

"I'll certainly lobby Z'rong to get you in our wing once you graduate," Dr'vid said, echoing her thoughts, "but they usually like to put the young riders in the lower wings, since it'll be a little less dangerous once Thread starts to fall."

"I think I'll probably appreciate being there when the time comes, but maybe you'll get to be my Wingleader one day," she teased.

"I'm only a Wingsecond now," he reminded her, "but of course I dream of having my own wing one day. We all do, I guess. Something about Impressing these bronze lumps addles our brains."

"When did you Impress?" Carima inquired, and the conversation continued as the two riders began the exhausting process of oiling their dragons.

Carima was finished well before Dr'vid since the bronze dragon was so much larger. "I'd better get going so I'm not late to the afternoon lecture," she said somewhat reluctantly. She'd enjoyed talking to Dr'vid. The bronzerider was friendly, articulate, and intelligent.

"I definitely don't want to be responsible for making you late to one of T'rut's lectures. I'll see you tomorrow morning for drill, bright and early."

"Fabulous," Carima laughed and dragged Mayath away from the bronze. She was sure the two had been having a private conversation from the way the green was radiating smugness.

_Do you like Brizerth's rider?_ Mayath asked Carima as they crossed the bowl.

"Of course,"she responded automatically. Then, realizing the deeper layers of her dragon's question, she added silently, _I don't know. I guess I need to get to know him better, but he is nice. And handsome. _It was hard to find anything to complain about his tall, well-muscled frame and blond hair.

Carima was distracted from her musings by the greetings she received from numerous riders as they continued across the bowl. She said hello to members of her own wing and some riders she didn't even know.

_What is going _on She asked Mayath as the seventh rider called out her name.

_Their dragons know I will be rising soon, _Mayath said, and Carima didn't know her green could sound so pleased with herself. _Their riders are excited that you are a female. _

It had been mostly bronze and brown riders saying hello, Carima realized. Now that her dragon was close to rising, her previous status as an unwelcome anomaly was being replaced by excitement for her appealing status as a potential partner.

"This is getting ridiculous," Carima muttered as an eighth man, a rather elderly brown rider, smirked as she walked by.

_Just enjoy the attention, _Mayath said as they approached the classroom. _I know I am._

With that, Mayath took off for the rim of the bowl for some sunbathing and preening in front of her admirers, and Carima had no choice but to struggle through class with dozens of unsettling thoughts swirling around in her head.

_10.24.199_

"So then they made us go through the entire formation _on the ground. _It was the most ridiculous drill I've ever had to do—Carima? Are you all right?"

Carima realized she hadn't been paying attention to a word coming out of K'say's mouth in the past five minutes. "I'm sorry, K'say, I don't know what's wrong with me today," she said, picking distractedly at her meal. As usual, they'd met up for their rest-day afternoon meal, but she hadn't been able to keep her mind on the conversation at all. This was already the third time she'd drifted away. "I think Mayath may be having weird dreams or something." She'd left the green sleeping peacefully in the sun, but now it felt like Mayath was growing restless in her sleep.

"Don't worry about it," K'say said with a lot more patience than Carima would have if their positions were reversed. "We've all had those days. Maybe she just doesn't know what to do with a day off. You did say Z'rong was working you hard, right?"

"Yes—" Carima was about to reply when another wave of unsettling emotion came across the mental link she shared with Mayath. She reached out to the dragon but couldn't seem to get through to her. It was as if she was trying to wade through thick water or something. Mayath's thoughts darted and leapt in the water, but Carima was too slow to catch them. "Something's happening," she murmured, and then the chair slipped out from underneath her and she crashed to the floor as Mayath's thoughts crystallized.

_Awake. Tense. Impatient. Hungry. _

_Lust. _

The feelings crashed into Carima one after another and she was hyper-aware as the green launched from the rim of the Weyr and dove towards the feeding pens, crashing into a herdbeast and tearing into the vulnerable stomach with wicked claws.

"Carima, come on, you have to get up. Cirinth says Mayath is rising and you need to go to her. Now." His voice cracked on the last note as the first wave of feelings from the imminent flight hit him as well.

K'say grabbed her by the arm and hauled her to her feet, and Carima momentarily leaned into the delightful contact before ripping her arm away. She wouldn't be caught _that _easily.

She remembered nothing of K'say shepherding her out of the dining caverns and down to the feeding pens, where Mayath had already started blooding her second kill. Her concentration was centered on her powerful, lovely green as she greedily sucked the warm liquid from the dead runner. A prodigious crowd of bronze, brown, and blue dragons had gathered around the green, waiting for her to leap off the ground and take to the sky.

Finally she'd had enough. Mayath screamed her defiance at the waiting males and then pushed off with her hind legs and streaked into the air, leaving the slower males in her dust. They would _never_ catch her. She was invincible and unattainable. She would revel in her freedom and make the other dragons wish they had even a tenth of her speed, strength, and agility.

Twisting and turning, diving and rolling, Mayath streaked across the powder blue sky, not letting even one of her pursuers get close. Carima unconsciously mirrored her movements on the ground, getting close to one rider after another but not letting any of them touch her. They ignored all the compliments and boastings coming from dragons and riders.

Mayath/Carima was beautiful and terrible and would never be conquered.

Several of the males began to drop out of the race, unable to keep up with Mayath's exuberant acrobatics. Mayath screamed in approval as each one failed. They were not worthy of her.

Despite the adrenalin and sheer joy of flight running through her veins, even Mayath could not keep up the pace forever. She glanced back and surveyed her remaining suitors. Three bronzes, two browns, and a lone blue were all that remained in the pack.

Drigenth, Waltith, and Prith were hardly worth consideration, but the others…they had possibilities. While executing a sweeping turn, Mayath eyed brown Crasth, bronze Brizerth, and blue Cirinth. They had impressed her with their dogged determination and stamina.

The brown, Crasth, was certainly handsome, if a bit old. She was surprised he had stayed in the flight as long as he had. Was his determination worth rewarding? Mayath drew slightly closer and let one wing trail tantalizingly across his back before darting away again. Carima's fingers trailed across D'rek's arm far below.

But what about Cirinth? Mayath flew next to the blue for a stretch, admiring his sparkling color and the length of his fine tail that had so entertained her as a young dragonet. In the link she shared with her rider, Mayath could feel the affection Carima felt for the blue's rider and wondered if he was the right choice.

_Choose me, Little One, _Cirinth called desperately. He was beginning to tire but he was determined to claim the pair he and K'say felt so strongly about.

Mayath listened to his words, but there was one last dragon to consider.

She dipped away from Cirinth and brushed up next to Brizerth. The handsome bronze was starting to struggle as much as Cirinth, his great wings laboring. But he had put in an admirable performance, considering a bronze as large as he was should have been easily outmaneuvered by the smaller colors.

Mayath would have to make her choice.

Despite the emotional tug she felt for Cirinth, Brizerth's sparkling color and strong form won the day. Crooning now she positioned herself in front of Brizerth so that all he needed to do was reach out and claim her. The bronze bellowed in triumph as his claws sank into her shoulders and they fell into ecstasy.

Down below, Dr'vid virtually yanked Carima into his arms. Somehow Carima was in two places at once, falling with Mayath and desperately kissing Dr'vid. The two riders stumbled into an empty weyr and gave themselves over to the aftermath of the flight.

Carima woke to her stomach rumbling loudly and a warm body lying next to hers.

"Is that your stomach or mine?" Dr'vid stretched and sat up in the bed, looking down at her. He seemed enormous from that vantage point, and Carima was treated to an uninhibited view of his bare chest and torso. The feminine side of her was thrilled at the man that had ended up in her bed, though a part of her cringed. In the back of her mind, she had been expecting a thin, pale figure with dark hair rather than the bronzerider Dr'vid.

"Mine, I think," she said tentatively. She really wasn't sure how to proceed from here. All her teenage liaisons had been awkward, brief affairs and in no way prepared her for the intense physical and emotional event she'd just experienced. "I never got to finish my lunch before—well, everything."

Dr'vid smiled and reached out to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "I know first flights can be kind of overwhelming. I hope we didn't disappoint," he said with a bit of a smug grin.

"You know very will it wasn't a disappointment," Carima said, reaching out in turn to poke him in the chest. His grin just widened.

"Brizerth and Mayath seem to be happy," he said, and Carima reached out through the mental link. Mayath and her new mate were curled up together on Dr'vid's weyr ledge. The green was sleeping, but even through the haze Carima could tell that the green was immensely pleased.

"She made a good choice," Carima said, ignoring that insistent little twinge that said _someone else _should have been there.

Dr'vid stretched again and a bit of a frown crossed his handsome features. "I wish I could stay, maybe go and get some food with you, but I was supposed to be in a meeting with Z'rong ages ago. He'll give me a little time since he'll know about the flight, but he won't wait forever. Will you be all right?"

"Sure," Carima said, lying only a little. "I'll probably go and get some dinner and then finish oiling my riding straps. That _was_ supposed to be the plan for the evening. We've got early drill tomorrow, so I'll probably get to sleep soon."

"Good. Well, I'll see you then. Maybe we can take a meal together sometime." Carima nodded and waited as he quickly dressed. As he was leaving the weyr he turned around and grinned again. "By the way, Carima, have I mentioned how glad I am that Mayath chose you to be her partner?"

Carima just laughed and felt somewhat better. Once she'd pieced together her own set of clothes she made a beeline for the dining caverns. Her stomach was rumbling louder with every step, but when she arrived her appetite suddenly disappeared.

K'say was sitting in the corner, several empty glasses scattered around him, and he did not look happy.

Never one to avoid a confrontation, Carima walked over and sat down in front of the bleary eyed bluerider. "Hi," she said, not quite sure how to begin.

"Shouldn't you be with your bronzerider?" K'say spat out, glaring through red-rimmed eyes.

"He's not _my _bronzerider," Carima said in annoyance. She knew K'say was drunk and probably didn't know what he was saying, but she really wasn't in the mood for his theatrics. "Just because Brizerth caught Mayath it doesn't mean we're…together, or anything. You know what flights are like."

"I know that we shoulda won," he replied, slurring the words together. "Cirinth tried, he did, she jus' didn't want him." He looked up, and Carima could see heartbreak in his eyes. "You didn't want either of us."

"That is not true!" Carima said, acutely aware that many pairs of eyes were now fixed on them.

"Makes sense, doesn't it? Only girl that rides a green, c'n have anyone she wants. All girls want th'bronzers. See those shiny hides and drop the rest of us like _that_." He snapped his fingers on the last word and took another gulp of wine. Not Benden white but strong, sour wine from Tillek.

"You need to sober up and think about what you're saying," Carima shouted, not caring who was listening. "If I'd had my way Mayath would have chosen Cirinth, but I can't help that. That's what I came over to tell you, but maybe now I'm glad she chose Brizerth. At least Dr'vid has manners and knows how to treat a woman."

With that Carima turned on her heal and stalked out of the dining caverns. She was extremely grateful that the tears didn't start to fall until after she was safely in her weyr.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: **Hi everyone—I'm really sorry about the outrageous amount of time since this story was last updated. College, friends, internship search, study abroad in Scotland, blah blah blah. The important thing is, I'm going to try really hard to devote more time to this story! I want to thank everyone who has reviewed so far. I had actually forgotten about _Dragon's Duty_, and then I happened to check my Yahoo mail account and found I had about twenty-five reviews on the story since the last update, and I decided that I didn't want to leave people hanging. With that said, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and as always, I like to hear what you think worked, what can be improved, etc. Enjoy!

**Chapter Eight: Fall**

_13.30.199—Turn's End_

"You're not listening to a word I'm saying, are you?"

"Hmm? What was that?"

"Exactly my point," Th'ron said with an even mixture of annoyance and amusement. "C'mon, why don't we go take a few turns around the dance floor, if you don't want to talk? We can show Mariko and L'tad how it's done." The young goldrider and her partner were hard to miss out on the dance floor, with Mariko wearing a brilliant gold dress and a crimson sash tied snugly around her waste. They'd been dancing for most of the Turn's End celebration and didn't seem likely to stop anytime soon.

"Who would have thought L'tad would turn out to be such a good dancer?" Carima asked with a quirked eyebrow at Th'ron, and was rewarded with a large smile. It was the first statement she'd made all night that hadn't been "yes," "no," or "sorry, what was that you said?"

"I knew there had to be something there along with the negativity and sour attitude. After all, Werth saw _something_ in him back at the Hatching."

"Very nice," Carima laughed, surprised at the rare flash of sharp humor from Th'ron, and finally the preoccupation that had plagued her for the entire evening dropped away. "All right, let's go. I like this song."

The harpers, set up on a dais in one corner of the Dining Cavern, commanded a perfect view of the entire extensive dance floor, which took up fully one half of the space available in the gigantic room. Carima could remember Turn's End celebrations in the past, trying to keep pace with Galeena while she planned the feast, organized the setup of the Dining Cavern, contracted harpers to play different shifts during the feast so that all had a chance to both work and celebrate, and generally came a handbreadth away from nervous collapse. Just like past turns, tonight's celebration was a masterpiece of planning and coordination between Galeena and dozens of other workers. In theory she missed the excitement and chaos of being involved in a celebration of this size, but with wingdrills and chores and lessons and taking care of Mayath, Carima had hardly even noticed it was Turn's End until Mariko casually mentioned it a few days ago.

Th'ron led Carima out onto the dance floor and they joined the many other couples engaged in a fast dance with lots of spinning and twirling. "I hope you know what you're doing," she muttered before they were caught up in the rhythm of the dance, moving among the other couples and with the flow of the song.

"And you said L'tad was a good dancer!" she gasped when it was finally over, breathing hard from their exertions. "You're really good. Where'd you learn to dance like that?" Carima was quite accomplished, but she'd had to work to keep up with Th'ron.

"Lots of sisters who all wanted to practice their dancing before going to Gathers," Th'ron said with a fond smile. "Practicing their dancing was pretty much the only use they had for me. Otherwise they ignored me all the time—easy to do in a family with five girls and only one boy. I had an easier time training the canines than dealing with all of them."

"I bet," Carima giggled, enjoying the image of a tiny Th'ron being passed around among his older sisters, forced to perfect each and every dance move. "Do you want to get something to eat? Somehow that dance woke up my appetite."

"Sure. Mariko, L'tad, come on!" The bronzerider waved at the other pair and the foursome headed over to a table.

"P'larn wanted me to wish you all a happy Turn's End," L'tad said once they'd all filled their plates with food and sat down. "He didn't feel up to coming tonight."

"I'm not surprised," Mariko said. "I just wish you'd been able to get him out of the weyr. He spends too much time by himself."

"It's not as if I didn't try," L'tad shot back, but his shadowed eyes revealed the worry they all felt. It was hard for him to live with the brownrider, who was now a pale, quiet shell of his former self. T'rut had hoped putting P'larn with one of his friends would ease the loss, but so far nothing had worked. Something integral had been lost with his brother and they found it impossible to reach him. He spent all his time with Tellineth when he wasn't fulfilling his Weyrling duties.

"I'm glad to see you're feeling better," Mariko whispered to Carima as Th'ron and L'tad continued to debate over how best to deal with P'larn. "It's about time you stopped moping over K'say. If both of you are too stubborn to apologize, you're just going to have to move on."

"_I'm _not the one being stubborn," Carima glared at Mariko. "_He's _the one that can't move on and forget about what happened."

"Yeah, but you haven't tried very hard to make that happen, have you? You've been ignoring him and you won't even try to make things right. It's been months now, and it's obvious that both of you are miserable. I call that being stubborn."

'He started it first' sounded like something a weyrbrat would say, so Carima just shrugged and focused on her plate of roasted herdbeast and tubers. She wouldn't admit that Mariko was right.

"You know, the next big celebration will be our graduation," Carima said, deciding that her problems with K'say and P'larn's sadness weren't the best topics for Turn's End. They were supposed to be looking towards the future, not worrying about the past. "Can you imagine, getting tapped into the wings and putting on our new knots?"

"Just in time for Thread to start falling," Mariko nodded. The signs were clear enough; everyone was expecting Thread to come within the next three months. The watchriders were cautioned to be more vigilant than ever, and the Weyrlings all fervently hoped they would be graduated in time for the first Fall; otherwise, they would be stuck ferrying firestone to the wings rather than actually fighting Thread.

"I don't envy Z'fer one bit, having to figure out how to be Weyrleader and deal with an entire Weyr that has no idea what fighting Thread will really be like." L'tad nodded across the hall at the new Weyrleader, a tall man with silver hair who was seated next to Lirallen. The Weyrleaders seemed happy; Carima figured Lirallen must like Z'fer better than J'rey. While J'rey had been a good Interval leader, even-tempered and willing to appease everyone, Z'fer was by reputation firm and decisive, a much better leader during Fall. Carima and Mayath were scheduled to start drilling with Black Flight soon, and she was more than ready to see what their new leader was like.

"The dragons will know what to do," Mariko said optimistically. "We'll just have to trust them to get us through. Their instincts will be much better than ours. I just hope I don't singe Caleyth with the flamethrower! It's so much harder than just having a dragon that can flame."

Carima laughed as Mariko embarked on a long rant about the hated flamethrowers. She didn't notice someone step up behind her chair until she felt a tap on her shoulder.

She turned and her jaw immediately hardened and her eyes narrowed as she found herself looking at K'say. "Can I help you?" she asked coldly.

"Look, do you want to talk or not? Cirinth said Mayath said you wanted to see me."

_Mayath! _Carima yelped mentally, giving her dragon a fierce mental prod. _What are you playing at?_

_It is time you stopped being foolish and made up with Cirinth's rider. We both agreed. _

"Stupid, meddling, interfering dragon," Carima grumbled before pushing away from the table and standing up. She pulled K'say by the arm, purposely not looking at him, away from her pretending-not-to-be-listening friends. "Here's the thing," she said, still not looking K'say in the eyes. "I've let you ruin too much for me over the past few sevendays. I won't let you ruin Turn's End. I'm going to go back with my friends, but if you still want to talk tomorrow, meet me here for breakfast before wingdrill. All right?" Finally she looked up, and it seemed like a flash of something like relief passed over K'say's face.

"See you tomorrow then," he said succinctly. "Happy Turn's End."

With that he walked away, and Carima returned to her friends, who were all very pointedly not looking at her and carrying on a falsely loud conversation.

"Let's dance, Th'ron," she said, tugging at her friend's elbow. She wanted to dance and dance and dance until she was so exhausted she couldn't think. Not about the past, not about K'say, and not about what the future might hold.

_1.1.1_

Carima faced K'say at one of the corner tables, away from the majority of early risers—the few people that had escaped the previous night's revelries without a hangover. The Weyrleaders sat together at one table, drinking klah and pouring over a series of charts. Mostly older riders dotted the other tables, and tired lower caverns workers moved between them, serving food and drinks. The candidates were already assembled at their table, looking unhappy about having to begin their chores. The corner only gave a semblance of privacy, though, with Mayath keeping close tabs on the conversation.

"So?"

"Look," K'say sighed, running a hand through his hair, "I'm sorry, all right? I was drunk and angry, but I had no right to yell at you. I know as well as the next rider that the dragon sometimes chooses without considering the rider's feelings."

"You said some really terrible things," she said, keeping a close guard on her tone and expression. His words seemed inadequate, compared to the turmoil she'd been feeling.

"I know, and I should have apologized sooner, but whenever I tried to get close you either ignored me or looked at me like I was a tunnelsnake. You didn't exactly encourage reconciliation."

"No, I guess not," she allowed. "Mariko says I've just been stubborn."

"That's an understatement," K'say said with a grin.

"So what made you decide to apologize?" If he thought he could just smile at her and fix things, he would be disappointed.

"I missed you. Believe me or not, but it's the truth. I'm not expecting you to forgive me right away, but can we at least try being friends again? I'd rather not start the new turn with your displeasure hanging over my head." Neither of them needed to say that with Thread coming soon, the future was always uncertain. It wasn't a good policy to leave things unsaid, because Thread could snuff out a life in an instant.

_Say yes! _Mayath prodded.

Carima opened her mouth but she lost her train of thought because the sound of an angry dragon bellowing and a shattering noise pierced the quiet. Across the Dining Cavern, the Weyrleader's face had gone gray with shock and he was whispering furiously to the Weyrwoman, whose face soon mirrored his. The shattered mug of klah lay at his feet.

_Thread is falling early!_ Mayath relayed the news to her rider as Drezith, Z'fer's great bronze, bespoke every dragon in the Weyr. _It comes over the mountains and will pass over Crom soon. All riders are to assemble in the bowl and start feeding their dragons firestone!_

Carima and K'say had time to exchange one shocked glance before the Dining Cavern exploded with activity. All riders rushed to the bowl as rumbles from the dragons made the ground shake as if it was a Hatching. Lower caverns workers and candidates also went to the bowl to start bagging firestone. Healers scrambled to assemble numbweed, bandages, redwort, and other essential materials.

_Pelth says we are to report to his rider in the bowl. We will be ferrying firestone for the wings._

_I need to go to the weyr and get my flying gear, and we need to get your straps on. I'll meet you there, then we'll go down to the bowl, _Carima said before stretching into a dead run.

Twenty minutes later, T'rut addressed his Weyrling class. "There are to be no heroics today. This Fall is going to be messy enough without any of you acting like sharding wherries and getting yourselves killed. When a dragon calls, you double check the coordinates and bring them firestone, get the empty sacks, and come straight back here for more. If you feel like your dragon is getting tired, tell Pelth _immediately_. Under no circumstances are you to try and flame Thread unless you or your lifemate are in direct danger. Do I make myself understood?"

"Yes, sir," thirty-seven voices answered immediately. There were no wandering eyes, no daydreams, no secret whispers. The Weyr's six wings had disappeared _between _only moments ago, but already a few dragons had returned to the bowl, screaming from the pain of Threadscores or crooning with anxiety for their injured riders.

Carima stood with P'larn, L'tad, and Th'ron. Mariko was already gone, needed in the queen's wing. "It's early because we've had such a warm winter," P'larn said, surprising all of them. "Warm and dry. No cold to freeze the Thread, no rain to drown it."

"How do you know?"

"I've been doing a lot of reading lately," he responded quietly, not reacting to their surprise. "There's some good stuff in the old record hides, if you know where to look."

"It couldn't have picked a better day to come," Carima said. "Half the riders are still drunk from last night, and the other half are hung over. What a day for the first Fall of the Pass." It was a sobering thought; it might have been the first Fall, but Thread would be coming with deadly regularity for the next _fifty turns._ The chance of any of them making it through the Pass and living to a ripe old age was highly unlikely.

"Just concentrate on doing what you have to do," Th'ron said, patting Carima's arm. "We'll be fine."

She could only nod in response, a lump in her throat preventing any further discussion. More and more dragons were coming back to the Weyr, and some of the wounds were hideous—gaping holes in the sides of the dragons, wings pierced in multiple areas, and ichor seeping into the bowl's stony floor.

"I have to go!" Th'ron was the first to be called. There wasn't even time to wish him good luck before he was sprinting over to Legeth, vaulting up onto the great bronze neck, and taking off into the air. P'larn and L'tad followed quickly after, and then it was Mayath urgently addressing her.

_Brizerth calls. They need more firestone._

_Do you have the coordinates? _Carima asked as she settled into the straps and pulled down her goggles.

_Yes._

_And you double-checked with Brizerth?_

Yes._ We must go now. _

_Then take us _between.

Three seconds of nothingness and absolute cold, then they were out in the open, among the Red Flight dragons darting here and there, flaming the silvery strands of Thread drifting down from above. Fire flashed everywhere, on all sides and from the upper level flights and those below. Dragons blinked in and out of _between _to avoid being scored and sometimes, with a screech, would disappear permanently, back to the Weyr and the waiting healers.

Carima spotted Brizerth, who was shooting out great gouts of flame while the blue and green partnered with him prevented any renegade strands of Thread from coming near him. Mayath winged over, keeping a lookout on all sides for Thread, and Carima hastily unknotted the heavy firestone sacks.

_Ask Brizerth if Dr'vid is ready to catch the first sack. _

_He says yes, _Mayath answered just as Dr'vid waved at her. Her first toss wobbled and didn't quite reach Dr'vid—a combination of her nerves and the natural, inbred terror of a human stuck outside during Threadfall—but he was able to lean over and catch the sack. Once he'd secured it he waved again, and the second toss was quick and accurate. Within seconds she had caught the empty sacks he tossed back.

_Rowanth says watch out _was the only warning Mayath gave her before they blinked _between _to avoid one small bit of Thread that had gotten through the defenders, and then they were safely back over the bowl.

_Well done,_ Carima praised Mayath.

_There's no time to waste! Territh calls for more firestone._

From then on the Fall became a matter of stamina: of dragging the heavy firestone sacks up onto Mayath, of making quick and accurate tosses, of getting on and off Mayath to exchange the empty sacks for full ones, of ignoring the distressing calls of both riders and dragons who hadn't been lucky enough to remain unscathed. It seemed like days had passed since they started ferrying, and Carima could tell Mayath was exhausted—her normally smooth flying was becoming jerky and labored.

_That's it, _she said firmly after they only narrowly avoided getting scored. _Tell Pelth that we're done. I'm not letting us go out again. _

_No need,_ Mayath responded, mental voice filled with relief. _Drezith says Fall is over. He calls for volunteers to sweepride and make sure there are no burrows, but we are done. _

Carima let out a sigh of sheer thankfulness that they had survived and wordlessly directed Mayath to land in the bowl. The wings were now appearing all around, some severely depleted from injuries, and the air was filled with exhausted dragons and dirty, grim-faced riders.

Mayath landed near Pelth's familiar blue form and Carima immediately scanned the crowd of Weyrlings, looking for her friends. She could have cried from happiness when she identified gold, bronze, brown, and blue—they had _all _made it.

"Ow!" The force of Mayath's landing startled a cry out of her and she suddenly realized that sharp pains were radiating out of her left forearm.

_You hurt!_ Mayath cried. Her eyes, gray from exhaustion, took on the red of worry as she craned her neck around to examine Carima.

_My arm's been burned, _she said as she looked at the scorch marks on her flying jacket. _Must've gotten some char while we were ferrying. I didn't even notice it until just now. _Her stomach rolled unhappily when, beneath the toasted black fabric, she saw raw, angry red flesh. _I'm going to get down and find a healer, _she said, trying her best to keep the insistent pain away from Mayath. She didn't want the green to panic, not after she had performed so well during Fall. _I'll be back to take off your straps as soon as I get this taken care of, and we'll give you a nice bath. _

_I should have been more careful, _Mayath said sadly, head drooping. The normally confident green was distinctly unhappy. _I'm supposed to take care of you._

_We take care of each other, _she told her firmly, and once she had jumped down she went to give Mayath a quick caress with her right arm, keeping the left cradled against her chest. _Why don't you check with Legeth and see how the others did. I'll be back soon._

It was only much later while lying in bed, after the healers had fussed over her arm and she'd bathed Mayath and spoken to her friends and cleaned her gear and picked at her dinner, too exhausted to eat, that the significance of the day's events came crashing down. They had proven themselves. They might still be Weyrlings, but in fighting Thread, all riders and dragons were on an even playing field. Some had not been as lucky—the dragons had keened for at least five pairs, and scores more wouldn't be flying for months.

_We're truly dragonriders of Pern now,_ Carima said to Mayath.

The green replied with pride and affection, and it was cocooned in her love that Carima finally fell asleep.


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Note: I am extremely pleased to announce that this is the final chapter of _Dragon's Duty_. I started this story at the beginning of the summer of 2006, and nearly a year later, it's finally complete. I would like to thank everyone who took the time to read or review. I can only hope that you've enjoyed the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you've held off reviewing before now, this would be the time to let me know what you think. Thanks for coming along for the ride.

**Chapter Nine: Duty Fulfilled **

_5.18.1_

"I love the day after Fall. There is nothing better than an entire day to do whatever you want. I pity those poor new weyrlings that actually have _classes_ to go to."

Carima raised an amused eyebrow at L'tad, who was speaking loud enough to ensure that all of the junior weyrlings at the table could hear his words. More than any of the other older weyrlings, he enjoyed being able to lord his seniority over the younger class.

"If you call working on a new set of straps, bathing our dragons, doing laundry, and reviewing Threadfall formations 'doing whatever you want,' then yes, I agree with you completely," Carima said to him.

"It's still better than going to classes," L'tad muttered back. He didn't like it when Carima stepped in to prevent him from terrorizing the younger riders.

"You know, Mariko will probably kill you if she catches you treating Caleyth's first class like this," Th'ron pointed out with a smile.

L'tad shrugged and tried to retain his normal reserve, but Carima caught a twinkle in his eyes. It was the same with all of them when they thought about the thirty-nine eggs hardening on the sands. Caleyth had surprised them all by rising earlier than expected. Perhaps the pale queen had been responding to some natural instinct, knowing that the Weyr needed more young dragons to face Thread. Whatever the reason, Mariko's friends were awaiting the hatching of Caleyth's clutch with all the anticipation of a bunch of old aunties and uncles.

Mariko, methodically chewing a piece of bread, refused to join in the banter, but there was a softness in her eyes whenever she thought about her dragon's first clutch of eggs. Thirty-nine was a respectable number for a young queen, and she could be justifiably proud of Caleyth.

"Is Ekerith still hovering around Caleyth as much as before?" Th'ron asked Mariko.

"Even more. He's insufferable, but Caleyth seems to like the attention."

"Probably as much as you like the attention from D'ben!" Carima teased, and was rewarded by a faint blush appearing on Mariko's normally stoic face.

"Yes, well," she muttered, and returned to her food.

The teasing probably would have continued, but silence fell over the dining caverns as Z'fer stood at the high table to address the riders and weyrfolk.

"Today is a special day," he began. "Today, we celebrate the culmination of over a turn and a half of hard work. Today, we celebrate the accomplishments of an extremely talented and dedicated group of individuals. Today, we welcome our young brothers and sisters to the wings as full riders."

A nervous flutter started in Carima's stomach when she heard the words 'special day," and by the end of Z'fer's speech a lump had formed in her throat. Around her, Carima's friends all had shocked expressions on their faces. It was only then that she realized why the dining caverns had seemed so crowded for dinner. The entire Weyr had turned out to witness the first graduation of the Pass.

"I would like to invite my fellow wingleaders to join me as we welcome our new riders." As one, the Telgar wingleaders stood and joined Z'fer at the high table before walking in a line straight for the weyrling table. One by one, the wingleaders stepped forward to tap the young riders into their wings.

B'rek, wingleader of Yellow Flight, was the first, resting his hand on a shoulder quivering with excitement. "Ch'ren, it is my pleasure to invite you to fly with Yellow Flight. It will be an honor flying with you."

"M'ard, it is my pleasure to invite you to fly with Green Flight. It will be an honor flying with you."

L'tad was the first of their friends to be tapped. "L'tad, it is my pleasure to invite you to fly with Orange Flight. It will be an honor flying with you." Carima and the others let out a wild cheer as L'tad, his face glowing uncharacteristically, gripped his new wingleader's arm in the traditional rider's greeting and joined his new wingmates.

Lirallen, her face wreathed in smiles, rested her hand on Mariko's shoulder. "Mariko, it is my pleasure to invite you to fly with the Queen's Wing. It will be an honor flying with you." The tall girl was still clutching her half-finished piece of bread as she walked proudly with Lirallen to the high table.

Carima was nearly squirming with anticipation, wondering which wing she would end up in. A nasty voice in the back of her mind insisted that _none _of the wings would want her. They would be the only ones to not graduate, destined to ferry firestone and never become a real fighting pair.

"Th'ron, it is my pleasure to invite you to fly with Red Flight. It will be an honor flying with you." Carima gaped as Z'rong solemnly tapped her friend. Weyrlings almost _never _went straight into a mid-altitude wing. It was a great honor and an indication that the Weyrleaders expected great things from him.

She was so busy cheering for Th'ron, who looked completely stunned as he was herded to the Red Flight table, that she didn't realize someone was coming up to her until a heavy hand landed on her shoulder.

"Carima, it is my pleasure to invite you to fly with Green Flight. It will be an honor flying with you." Carima blinked up at E'res's face. The wingleader winked at the blank expression on her face. "What, did you think we would forget about you? Come and join your wingmates, rider."

Weyrling no longer, Carima accepted E'res's arm and walked with her new wingleader over to the Green Flight table. She was the last weyrling to be tapped into Green Flight, and she wasn't sure how the older riders would react. Would they be disappointed to have the female freak in their wing?

As they approached, her former classmates led the cries of welcome and whistles, while heavy hands clapped her on the back or affectionately tousled her hair. Tears prickled in the corners of her eyes as she realized that they didn't care that she was a girl. Regardless of her sex, she had proven herself to be worthy of her dragon, worthy of her classmates, and worthy of her Weyr.

_Did you ever doubt that we would succeed? I knew I picked right that day on the sands. There could have been no one else for me. _

_Thank you, love, _Carima thought back, engulfed in waves of pride and love from her dragon. Mayath's excitement and pleasure in their graduation was a constant presence in her mind.

Once all the weyrlings had been tapped into the wings, a steady stream of lower caverns workers poured into the dining caverns, carrying steaming plates of food and flasks of wine. Harpers arrived with their instruments in tow and a makeshift dance floor was hastily constructed.

Carima exchanged congratulations with her new wingmates, but she was anxious to find her friends. She found Mariko first and bit back a giggle when she realized that the goldrider already had a glass of wine in her hand. "For you, my dear," she cried when Carima approached, pouring a second glass of wine and thrusting it in her hand. "Congratulations!"

"You're starting a little early, aren't you?" Carima pointed out with a grin.

"Don't you know the entire point of graduation is to get as drunk as possible and find someone to go to bed with? A turn and a half without drinking and without girls! I thought I was going to die during my training." Carima laughed as her cheerful brother arrived, looking as if he would burst from pride. "My little sister, a full rider. Who would have thought? Here's to both of you, for successfully completing your training." C'rin lifted his glass and they followed suit.

Th'ron, P'larn, and L'tad made their way over soon after, and they made a cheerful group, reminiscing about training and gossiping about their new wings. Even P'larn had a smile on his face and color in his cheeks.

_Are you sure you can't celebrate out in the bowl? _Mayath asked plaintively. _It's not fair that you get to celebrate inside. What if I wanted to try some of this 'wine' you seem to like so much?_

Carima choked as Mayath delivered this complaint and had to suffer C'rin pounding her on the back before she regained her composure. "Mayath," she said with a shrug to her friends before replying to the sulky green, _Trust me, you wouldn't like the wine anyway. It's not nearly as good as herdbeast. _

_Really?_

_I promise. _

The harpers began playing their music and her friends quickly dispersed. Mariko left to dance with D'ben while Th'ron, L'tad, and P'larn vowed to find partners among the off-duty lower caverns workers. C'rin returned to his own wingmates, and Carima was left by herself at the table.

Her solitude didn't last for long. She'd known it was only a matter of time before he arrived.

"So you finally did it," K'say said. "How do you feel?"

Carima turned to face him, drinking in the familiar thin face and dark hair and eyes. She noticed he was dressed in his gather best. "Proud. Happy. A little overwhelmed. A little tipsy!"

"As you should be," K'say laughed, handing her yet another cup of wine. "I think I had a headache for a full sevenday after my graduation."

"A true accomplishment," Carima told him solemnly. "Mayath's decided that she wants to try wine. She doesn't really believe me when I tell her she won't like it."

"If any dragon could manage to get drunk, she would be the one."

A brief silence fell as Carima sipped her wine. Then she put the glass down and decided to speak before she lost her nerve. "I wanted to thank you, K'say, for everything."

"Everything?"

"For searching me. For pushing me onto the sands. For being my friend when so many people disapproved. For keeping watch over me during my training. For believing in me."

"Stop it now, you're going to make me blush. You make it sound like doing all of that was such a sacrifice. Don't you know that caring for you is the easiest thing in the world?"

Now it was Carima's turn to blush. "Even when I'm a stubborn fool?"

"Especially then. Come on, let's go dance."

As they walked to the dance floor, Mayath commented, _I would not be upset if you wanted to spend the night in his weyr. Cirinth says there is plenty of room for me on his ledge. _

It took all of Carima's self control not to let Mayath's words change her outward appearance. _You never get tired of meddling, do you?_

_No. _

A slow dance was playing when they reached the floor. It seemed entirely natural when K'say drew her into his arms. "You know," she said, wondering whether it was the wine or Mayath's urging that made her so bold, "C'rin said that the entire point of graduation is to get drunk and find someone to go to bed with. I think I've taken care of the first point, but I wouldn't want to neglect the second."

She felt a rumble of laughter deep in K'say's chest. "We can only do one dance at a time, my dear," he pointed out, but his arms tightened around her waist. "Are you sure you can put up with a jealous old bluerider?"

"Yes," Carima answered simply. They continued to sway together, and she had the sensation of embarking on something new and a little scary.

_Today is the start of many new things, _Mayath observed.

She was right. Today they began their lives as full dragonriders of Pern. They might only live until the next Threadfall, or they might survive the entire Pass, a testimony to the strength of dragons. Whatever happened, Carima knew she would do it with her friends and K'say supporting her.

_And me._

_Yes. _

With Mayath forever at her side, they would do their duty to the people and dragons of Pern.

Author's Note #2: That ending wasn't _too _sappy, was it? All right, maybe a little. Anyway, I'm not making any promises, but I'm thinking about working on another story set in the Pern world. If you have any suggestions or requests as to what kind of project I should work on, leave them in a review or shoot me an email. Thanks again for reading!


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